History

Castiel is an angel. He manifests on Earth inside his vessel, Jimmy Novak. He is the only angel that is shown to have been resurrected after having been killed, and he has been resurrected more than once.

Many angels laid siege to Hell to rescue Dean, but it was Castiel who ultimately pulled Dean out. According to Castiel, he did so "Because God commanded it." His hand print was burned into Dean's left shoulder. Castiel is amongst a group of angels who manifest on Earth to stop the breaking of the the 66 Seals which will release Lucifer and start the Apocalypse. Over time he develops an empathy for the Winchesters, in particular Dean. When he learns that Michael actually intends for Lucifer to be released so he can kill him, Castiel tries to warn Dean, but is punished. Ultimately he breaks allegiance with Heaven to side with humanity.

With Lucifer free, and Castiel cut off from Heaven's power, he decides to try and find the long absent God. When he learns God is not interested in intervening to stop the Apocalypse, he is devastated. He works to support the efforts of Sam, Dean and Bobby in stopping the battle between Michael and Lucifer.

After Sam's sacrifice to defeat Lucifer, Castiel tries to rescue him from Lucifer's Cage, but fails to retrieve Sam's soul. In an attempt to prevent Raphael from restarting the Apocalypse, Castiel is tempted into an alliance with Crowley. The demon offers to help find Purgatory which can provide them both with great power. His efforts mean Castiel becomes increasingly distanced from the Winchesters as he hides his efforts from them, to the extent of breaking Sam's mind in order to hinder their pursuit of him.

After taking in the souls of Purgatory, Castiel kills Raphael. He claims that he is no longer an angel, but the new "God." After smiting many people he considered to be doing evil in God's name, he blacks out and loses control of his vessel, and his powers, to Leviathans possessing him. Conceding to Dean and Sam's wishes, Castiel attempts to return all the souls and entities inside him to Purgatory.

After the souls leave Castiel, he apologizes to Dean, and pledges to find some way of redeeming himself. His plans are cut short when the Leviathans, who managed to hold on, take over his vessel. As the vessel rapidly deteriorates, the Leviathans march it into a reservoir, where it disappears beneath the water, releasing them.

Castiel is later found wandering naked in the woods near the water with no memory of who he is by Daphne Allen, who claims that God led her to him. She takes him home, he takes on the name Emmanuel Allen, and they marry. He discovers he has a gift for healing.

While searching for a way to help Sam, whose psychosis is killing him, Dean hears about Emmanuel from another hunter, and is shocked to discover it is Castiel. Castiel eventually regains his memories, and is horrified at what he did. He tries to heal Sam, but unable to do so, he chooses to take Sam's madness into his own mind.

After becoming catatonic for a time, Castiel awakes crazed but cognizant when the Word of God is uncovered, and he helps Sam and Dean identify the tablet. He later aids Dean in killing Leviathan leader Dick Roman, and in the ensuing explosion is pulled into Purgatory with Dean, where Cas disappears. A year later, when Dean escapes Purgatory, Castiel is not with him, and Dean tells Sam that Cas "didn't make it," having "let go" in Purgatory when things "got hairy" not long before Dean escaped. Its revealed that in being in Purgatory restored Castiel's sanity and that while he helped Dean escape, he remained out of his own free will as he chose to stay in Purgatory as his penance for his sins. However, angels led by Naomi rescued him and Castiel was rescued, in a somewhat weakened state and under orders that he is unaware of to aid the Winchesters and report into Naomi periodically.

Although he eventually managed to escape Naomi's control, he was subsequently manipulated by exiled angel Metatron into completing a ritual that banished all angels from Heaven, the same ritual concluding with Metatron taking Castiel's grace and leaving him a human. After some time forced to make a life for himself as a human, made more complicated by Dean's decision to reject Castiel to take Heaven's attention away from Sam, who was still healing from damage he sustained during the trials, Castiel was able to regain his angelic status by stealing the grace from the angel Theo.

Characteristics

Castiel manifests on Earth through possession of a vessel - in his case Jimmy Novak. On one occasion, Castiel describes his true angelic form as a "multidimensional wavelength of celestial intent" [1]; on another, he says that his true form is the size of the Chrysler Building in New York, which is 1047 feet (319 m) in height.[2]

The sight of Castiel's true form will burn out a human's eyes, as Pamela Barnes found when she tried to summon him in a séance.[3] Castiel's true voice, like the true voices of other angels, is piercing to the human ear. He communicates with his vessel Jimmy through the electronics in his home[4], and appears to use an analogous method to communicate with Dean and Sam in Heaven.[5] Castiel can also speak to his vessel unaided; he converses with Jimmy to obtain his consent to serve as a vessel.[4] Castiel, using his vessel, can easily overpower and kill demons, sometimes even groups of them, by touch.

Castiel is able to teleport himself, and in some cases groups of people, through time and space. He can cover great distances in a matter of seconds, as shown in 6.06 You Can't Handle the Truth when he believes Gabriel's Horn of Truth has been discovered, and searches an entire city in moments. The angel possesses vast occult knowledge, ranging from lore, to spells cast in Enochian, to the structure and defenses of Hell.[2] Cas can move objects with a gesture. Castiel is also proficient with an Angel Sword, generally outmatching his angelic opponents while using it.[6][7][1]

Castiel rank in the Host of Heaven has varied, and the abilities he displays have varied based on his changing status. Castiel states that he was once the captain of his garrison.[8] In the past Anna Milton, in her angelic state, was his superior in their angel garrison. Uriel appears to be junior to him, until he is promoted when Castiel's superiors become concerned about Cas's empathy for Dean.[9]Zachariah was also his superior. However, Castiel seems to have been higher in rank than the henchmen that often accompanied Zachariah. Castiel indicated that he had been cut off from Heaven[10] after helping Dean escape from Zachariah,[11] meaning that he lost some of his abilities, including the power to heal. After banishing himself and a group of other angels, Castiel loses more of his powers and appears almost mortal at the end of season five. Castiel states on one occasion that he is now a Seraph and as a result, seems to hold onto all of his powers even though he is a fallen angel and cut off from Heaven again. However, since returning from Purgatory, his powers are weakened, leaving him exhausted when he uses his major abilities.[12][13] However, this seemed to be a temporary effect as he has since shown his powers with no ill effect.[14]

Castiel has been killed four times, once by Raphael[6], once by Lucifer[15], once by the Leviathans,and once by a reaper who was hired by Bartholomew. He is subsequently resurrected each time. After he died and returned the second time Castiel stated that he believes God brought him back "new and improved," by the third time he began to see his resurrections as punishments for all he's done. He is able to heal others with a touch and resurrect people at will.[15], He demonstrates pyrokinesis when he burns "Crowley's" bones.[16] Later, Castiel shows the ability to incinerate lesser monsters, such as the vampireLenore, by touch. He also releases a blast of white light from his palms that instantly kills anything that sees it.[17] It is also implied that he can kill even powerful demons with ease, including Crowley, the King of Hell, he is even able to force one back into its meatsuit to kill it. Despite his improved abilities Castiel remains unequal to an archangel, as Raphael can block his attempt to kill Crowley, as can Eve and the Leviathans.[17][18][19]

He also displays the unique ability to tell the Leviathans apart no matter what form they take. According to Meg this is due to the Leviathans briefly using him as a vessel, which allows him to know them "better than anyone."[8] He also displays the ability to sense the presence of nearby Leviathans before they become known to anyone else.[12]

Personality

Because he was an angel, Castiel initially expressed almost no emotion towards humans, and had little room for disobedience or feelings, as he was driven to follow his orders, although he does reveal some doubts about the morality of his orders, expressing an appreciation for the beauty of humans as God's creations.[20] As he spends more time with Dean, he develops empathy and affection for him, and eventually for those close to him, and humans in general. Castiel's superiors begin to question his loyalty and promote Uriel to oversee him. Castiel eventually rebels against and is ostracised from heaven, leaving him deprived of most of his angelic abilities, forcing him to interact more with humans than he had previously. He is often confused by the finer details of human interaction and is blind to social norms. He allies himself with Dean, and despite his despondency over the absence of his maker and their desperate situation, Castiel continues to fight against the Apocalypse.

After his second resurrection by God, with enhanced abilities, he sees his decisions and support of freewill to have been affirmed. Castiel begins to show pride, while remaining somewhat naive with regard to consequences. Crowley is able manipulate this budding sense of pride to get Castiel to start the angelic civil war. Castiel becomes dedicated to his own decisions, and tends to pass over other opinions, even Dean's, in the absence of another clear course. He eventually double-crosses Crowley, taking in the souls of Purgatory alone. He then insists on worship from his former friends. He intends to be an involved god, a better and loving god who will not abandon the world. He renounces his dedication to free will, saying that angels need a firm hand. He is quick to smite those he feels to be hypocritical and unjust, and rewards those who have faith. However, Castiel is being influenced by entities inside him - including leviathans - and his actions become erratic and violent. He realizes he is not strong enough to contain the power, and at a prompt from Sam, he goes to the brothers for help. He is apologetic and humbled; after the souls are out of him he wants to find a way to redeem himself before the brothers. He eventually takes Sam's madness on himself, freeing Sam.

In episode 5.14 My Bloody Valentine, Castiel shows his deep affection towards raw meat, eating it in the room and unable to get to famine, one of the four horsemen. Here, we realize that Castiel's vessel, Jimmy Novak is desiring the food which he cannot gain access to with the angel possessing him.

Castiel's insanity after taking on Sam's memories of Hell seems to free him of some of his guilt, though it leaves his mind scattered. He was unwilling to fight due to his belief that he is a "jinx," though Dean convinces him to help kill Dick Roman. He also expresses some fondness for Meg despite the previous animosity that existed between them. However, after getting trapped in Purgatory, Castiel seemed to have regained his sanity, though he admitted there is no way to know for sure. However, his experiences have changed his personality somewhat and he is no longer as aloof as he usually is and has displayed a fondness for human things he took for granted such as watching television, which he never understood before.

Episodes

When Dean wakes up in the woods, no longer in Hell, he goes to find Sam and Bobby. After performing the standard checks to make sure Dean is Dean, the trio speculate how and why Dean returned. After visiting a psychic friend of Bobby's (Pamela), they discover this creature is called Castiel, but also that it is very powerful; a single glimpse burnt out Pamela's eyes. After summoning Castiel in a warehouse. After rock salt and Ruby's knife prove ineffective, Dean asks who he is, to which Castiel replied that "I am the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition." Confused, Dean presses what Castiel means by this, and by showing Dean the shadows of his wings, Castiel convinces the Hunter that he is a angel, and that God has work for Dean to do.

"We tried. And there are other battles, other seals. Some we'll win, some we'll lose. This one we lost. Our numbers are not unlimited. Six of my brothers died in the field this week. You think the armies of Heaven should just follow you around? There's a bigger picture here. You should show me some respect. I dragged you out of Hell. I can throw you back in."

Castiel appears to Dean in a dream set in Bobby's kitchen, and confirms that the spirits who attacked them were Witnesses. He tells Dean that Lilith summoned them, and that in so doing she broke one of the 66 Seals. He explains that the angels are fighting to keep the other seals intact, because when the last one is broken, Lucifer will be freed.

"Destiny can't be changed, Dean. All roads lead to the same destination."

Castiel sends Dean back 1973 to meet his parents when they were young. The purpose of this was to show Dean the truth of what happened with Mary Winchester and Azazel. Castiel explains that the angels still have no idea what Azazel's endgame is. He then tells Dean that Sam is headed down a dangerous road and that if Dean doesn't stop him, the angels will.

"I’m not a… hammer as you say. I have questions, I have doubts. I don’t know what is right and what is wrong anymore, whether you passed or failed here. But in the coming months you will have more decisions to make. I don’t envy the weight that’s on your shoulders, Dean. I truly don’t."

Dean and Sam return to their motel room to find Castiel and Uriel waiting. Sam is thrilled to meet Castiel. Castiel's response is to acknowledge Sam as the "boy with the demon blood" and says that he is glad Sam is no longer using his powers. Castiel reveals they found a hex bag, which would've killed the boys, secreted in the room. He then tells them that the raising of Samhain by the witch will break another of the 66 Seals. He advises Sam and Dean to leave town because he and Uriel are going to destroy it. Sam and Dean argue that they can find and kill the witch and stop the summoning of Samhain.

Later Uriel expresses his contempt for humans and tries to persuade Castiel that they should destroy the town anyway. Castiel reminds him that Dean was saved because he has "potential," and reminds Uriel that they must follow their "true orders."

After Sam has used his powers to send Samhain to Hell, Castiel appears to Dean. He reveals that their true orders were to follow Dean's decision, as a test under battlefield conditions. Dean, thinking he's failed, asserts that he'd make the same decisions all over again if he had to, because of what he and Sam have saved. Castiel confides that he was praying Dean would choose as he did, and that he respects and loves humans as God's creations. He also admits that he has doubts about the plan from Heaven, and is no longer sure what is right and what is wrong. He warns that in the coming months, there will be more hard decisions for Dean -- and the angel does not envy him that.

"You know who we are and what we will do. I won't say it again. Leave now... or we lay you to waste."

Castiel and Uriel appear and demand that Sam and Dean hand over Anna, with Castiel announcing, "We're here for Anna...she has to die." Uriel states that Anna is not as innocent as she appears. The boys protest but the angels attack. Suddenly a bright light engulfs them and the angels are repelled and disappear. The boys go to the room where Anna was hiding, and find that she has used her blood to draw an angel banishing sigil on the mirror and banish the angels.

Uriel and Castiel reappear from being banished later to take Anna. Dean's choice is revealed: either Anna dies - or Sam. As the angels are about to take her, an injured Ruby appears with Alastair. The demons and angels confront each other and a fight ensues. During the confrontation Castiel faces off with Alastair, landing several blows and trying to cast the demon back into the Pit. It proves ineffective and Alastair pins Castiel to the ground, strangles him and starts a demonic chant. Castiel is saved from Alastair's grip when Dean hits the demon across the back with a tire iron and distracts him from Castiel.

During the fight Anna steals her grace from Uriel and becomes an angel again. During her transformation, Alastair disappears and his host is destroyed. Uriel and Castiel leave, and it is discovered that Sam had planned all along to bring the demons and angels together to get them to fight each other.

Castiel, pretending to be Bobby Singer, tells Sam by phone about a scenario described in a version of Revelations:

And he bloodied death under the newborn sky

Sweet to taste

But bitter once devoured

This is one of the 66 Seals which will be broken if two reapers are killed under a solstice moon. Castiel needs Sam and Dean to prevent the killing because the demons responsible are holed up in a refuge covered in Enochian sigils that prevent angels from entering. The boys are successful in preventing the seal from being broken, and in the process Castiel captures Alastair.

After talking with a reaper, Dean asks Castiel why, if death is part of the natural order, he was rescued from Hell. Castiel replies "You're different."

Castiel and Uriel then appear in the Winchesters' hotel, explaining to Dean that the torturing skills he learned in Hell are required to break Alastair so that they can identify which demon is killing angels. Dean refuses to accompany them, but Uriel and Castiel transport him to the place where Alastair is kept in spite of this protest.

Once there, Dean insists on speaking to Cas alone. Uriel departs. Castiel then explains that he has been placed under Uriel's authority because his superiors feel he is too emotionally involved with the Winchesters. They believe that this is impairing his judgment. Castiel tells Dean that the angels need, rather than want, him to do this. Dean is convinced, and enters the room where Alastair is held. Castiel waits outside, listening.

Anna arrives and attempts to convince Castiel that forcing Dean into torturing again is morally wrong, and that it could not truly be God's orders. Castiel is clearly uncertain. Anna approaches him, explaining that she felt doubt before she left Heaven. She tries to persuade him that together they could find an answer. Castiel backs away from her, insisting that they have nothing in common because she fell. He tells her to leave, and she does.

Meanwhile, Alastair is freed from the devil's trap and attacks Dean. Castiel enters the room and fights him, but Alastair manages to trap him. Alastair then begins to chant a demonic spell to send Castiel back to Heaven, but Sam interrupts him using his demonic powers, saving Castiel. Alastair is killed by Sam after insisting that no demon is responsible for the deaths of the angels.

Later, Castiel confronts Sam at the hospital where Dean is being treated. Sam assures Castiel that Alastair was not lying.

Uriel and Castiel meet at a playground to talk about how "something is wrong" in Heaven. Castiel then calls Anna and tells her that he is considering disobedience; however, he does not believe it is "good." He asks her to tell him what he should do, but she refuses, reminding him that he had thought her help beneath him a short while before. She tells him to make his own decisions.

Castiel returns to the warehouse where Alastair was kept and finds out that a leaky pipe enabled Alastair to escape from the devils trap. Uriel arrives while Castiel is examining the trap. Castiel declares that he built the old Enochian trap, and insists that a demon could not have defeated it. He demands to know the truth. Uriel admits that he was responsible for the deaths of the 7 angels, and that he wishes Lucifer to rise and humanity to be destroyed. He has been converting other members of the garrison to this viewpoint, and killing those that disagreed. Uriel attempts to recruit Castiel, but fails, and Castiel attacks him. Uriel fights back, bringing Castiel to his knees. Anna arrives clandestinely and stabs Uriel from behind, saving Castiel.

Castiel visits Dean in the hospital and confirms that Dean's actions in Hell resulted in the breaking of the first seal. When Dean asks why he was not left in Hell, Castiel responds that "the righteous man who begins it is the only one who can end it."

"If anything threatens a prophet, anything at all, an archangel will appear to destroy that threat. Archangels are fierce. They're absolute. They're heaven's most terrifying weapon."

Sam and Dean have encountered Chuck Shurley, a man who has written detailed accounts of the Winchesters' lives. Everything Chuck writes seems to come true. When Chuck predicts that Sam will encounter Lilith, Dean, afraid for Sam, angrily insists on an explanation of the writings. He threatens Chuck with violence, but Castiel arrives to stop Dean and reveals that Chuck Shurley is a Prophet of the lord. His books will one day be known as the Winchester Gospels. As a prophet, Chuck must not be harmed.

Dean returns to his motel to find that Sam has burned the protective hex bags Dean made. He is seeking the confrontation with Lilith that Chuck foresaw. Frustrated, Dean threatens to leave Sam to his fate, but changes his mind and instead storms out into the parking lot. Desperate, Dean starts to pray and Castiel appears, pleased by the sign of faith. Dean asks for help in preventing what Chuck has predicted, but Castiel refuses to interfere directly, saying that what a prophet has seen will come to pass. However, Castiel explains that Chuck is watched over by an archangel that will annihilate any threat to the prophet, including a demon like Lilith. Dean thanks him and uses the information by putting Chuck in the same room with Lilith as she and Sam are about to fight. This causes the archangel to appear, and Lilith flees.

"I wanna make sure you understand. You won't die or age. If this last year was painful for you, picture a hundred, a thousand more like it."

Castiel appears in a dream to Dean, and asks him to meet him in the real world because there is something he needs to tell him. When Dean and Sam arrive at the address provided by Castiel, they find signs of a violent confrontation. They encounter Castiel's vessel, Jimmy Novak, and determine that Castiel has been taken back to Heaven by force.

Castiel's vessel Jimmy Novak remembers little, but describes being possessed by Castiel as being "chained to a comet". Jimmy is anxious to return to his family. Sam and Dean try to prevent him from leaving, but Jimmy escapes. He returns home, but demons soon intrude, trying to capture the "empty vessel." Sam and Dean help the Novaks to escape, but the demons capture Jimmy's wife and his daughter, and offer to trade their lives for his.

Jimmy goes to meet the demons and is shot as a captive Sam and Dean watch. Suddenly Castiel returns, possessing Jimmy's daughter Claire Novak. She, like Jimmy, is an angelic vessel, having inherited the something "is in his blood" that made Jimmy a vessel. After defeating the demons, Castiel agrees to Jimmy's dying plea that Castiel use him as a vessel instead of his daughter.

As Castiel leaves, Dean asks him what it was he wanted to tell them, but Castiel rebuffs him, saying that he learned his lesson in Heaven. He doesn't serve man...or Dean, only Heaven.

"Consuming the amount of blood it would take to kill Lilith would change your brother forever. Most likely, he would become the next creature that you would feel compelled to kill. There's no reason this would have to come to pass, Dean. We believe it's you, Dean, not your brother. The only question for us is whether you're willing to accept it. Stand up and accept your role. You are the one who will stop it"

After discovering that Sam has been drinking demon blood, Dean and Bobby imprison him in Bobby's panic room. Dean calls on Castiel, demanding to know if Sam is capable of killing Lilith. Castiel says yes, but that consuming the amount of demon blood required would make him inhuman. Castiel reiterates that the angels believe Dean can be the one to stop the apocalypse, rather than Sam, and asks if Dean will accept that role. Dean agrees for Sam's sake, and swears fealty and obedience to God and the angels at Castiel's insistence.

Later Castiel comes secretly into Bobby's house and uses his powers to release Sam's bonds and open the door to Bobby's Panic Room. Sam escapes, and Castiel leaves. Anna visits Castiel at a waterfront, and confronts him over his actions, but he says he is acting on orders. He tells her that she should not have come to see him, and she is taken captive by other angels.

"What is so worth saving? I see nothing but pain here. I see inside you. I see your guilt, your anger, confusion. In paradise, all is forgiven. You'll be at peace. Even with Sam."

Castiel and Zachariah hold Dean captive in the Green Room, waiting as the apocalypse approaches. Dean pleads with Castiel to let him see Sam, but Castiel refuses, saying that it is not advisable. The doors of the room are removed to prevent Dean's escape.

Later, after Zachariah reveals the angels' real plan, Castiel returns and apologises to Dean for deceiving him. Dean is angry, and argues with Castiel, trying to convince him to help stop the apocalypse. Cas initially refuses, arguing that they would all be hunted. They argue, and Cas leaves. He then returns abruptly, forces Dean against a wall, and signals for silence. Cutting his forearm, Cas draws a sigil on the wall in blood. Zachariah arrives to stop him, but Castiel places a bloody hand on the sigil and Zachariah is sent away. Castiel says he will take Dean to Sam to stop him from killing Lilith - because her death IS the final seal.

Castiel and Dean visit Chuck Shurley, who has foreseen that Sam is at the Convent. An archangel arrives, and Castiel says he will hold it off and sends Dean directly to the Convent. Castiel and Chuck wait for the archangel as the house continues to shake.

"Alive? That's a good question. How did these two end up on that airplane? Another good question. 'Cause the angels didn't do it. I think we both know the answer, don't we?"

Early in the episode, the Winchesters visit Chuck Shurley to discover what happened to Castiel when the archangel attacked at the end of 4.22 Lucifer Rising. Chuck reveals that Castiel was killed, that he exploded "like a water balloon of chunky soup."

After luring the Winchesters to their father's storage unit, Zachariah reveals that Dean is the archangelMichael's vessel. Dean refuses to act as a vessel, so Zachariah tries to coerce Dean's agreement by torturing both Dean and Sam. Suddenly, Castiel appears. He attacks the two angels Zachariah brought with him, killing both with an angel sword. He then orders Zachariah to heal Sam and Dean, then leave. Zachariah complies.

Castiel informs the brothers that Lucifer is preparing to take a vessel and that they must be on their guard. He touches Sam and Dean, burning Enochian sigils into their ribs that will hide them from all angels, including Lucifer. When asked what brought him back to life, Cas does not answer, and vanishes.

"I killed two angels this week. My brothers. I'm hunted. I rebelled and I did it -- all of it -- for you. And you failed. You and your brother destroyed the world. And I lost everything -- for nothing. So keep your opinions to yourself."

Castiel calls Sam to find out where the boys are; he cannot locate them because the Enochian sigils he etched into their ribs hide them from all angels, including himself. He meets them at the hospital where Bobby is being treated. He reveals that he is cut off from Heaven following to rebellion, and has lost some of his powers, including the ability to heal. This means that he cannot help Bobby. He then says that in order to defeat Lucifer he plans to find God. He asks Dean for his amulet, which Cas says will burn hot in God's presence. Dean mocks Castiel's plan, and Cas responds angrily, detailing what he has done for the Winchesters and what he has lost as a result. Dean relents and gives him the amulet, with orders not to lose it.

Castiel visits Dean in a hotel room to ask for help. He wants Dean to help him find Raphael, the archangel who killed Castiel. Cas hopes to trap and interrogate Raphael, forcing him to divulge the location of God. Castiel also says that he is asking because Dean is "the only one who'll help me". Dean agrees to go along, but only if they drive. Cas and Dean arrive in the Maine town where Raphael was sighted and go to the local sheriff for information. Cas wants to tell the sheriff about Raphael, but Dean persuades him that the truth is not a good idea in this situation. He gives Castiel an FBI badge and straightens his tie.

After an awkward (and amusing) conversation with the sheriff, they discover that Raphael's vessel has been taken to a local hospital. Cas decides to trap Raphael using a very dangerous ritual involving holy oil obtained from Jerusalem. He admits to Dean that even though Dean, as Michael's vessel, will not be harmed, Castiel may not survive. Dean considers this, and asks Castiel what he would like to do on his last night on Earth. Dean throws out a few suggestions, and discovers from Cas's reactions that the angel is a virgin. In response, Dean takes Cas to a brothel. At a table in the bar area, Castiel looks terribly uncomfortable. Dean orders him to relax, to no effect. A girl comes over and Dean introduces her to Castiel. She leads the nervous angel to a back room, leaving behind a bemused Dean. A few moments later, a scream from the back sends Dean in search of Cas, who is being yelled at by the frightened prostitute. It seems that Cas tried to comfort the girl by telling her it wasn't her fault that her father ran away; it was because he hated his job at the post office. Dean laughs, and the two of them run as a pair of bouncers appear.

The next morning, Dean and Castiel place Raphael's vessel in a circle of holy oil in his room at the hospital. Castiel chants in Enochian to summon Raphael, then lights the oil. Raphael does not manifest, and hours later Dean and Castiel return to their base in an empty house. Raphael, occupying his vessel, is inside when they enter. He threatens to take Dean to Michael, but Dean lights a hidden circle of holy oil, trapping the archangel. Castiel and Raphael argue, with Raphael insisting that God is dead. Castiel refuses to believe him, and he and Dean leave Raphael trapped in the circle of fire. Later, Castiel says he believes God is out there, and that he will keep searching.

"Thanks. Except I used to belong to a much better club. And now I'm powerless. I'm hapless, I'm hopeless. I mean, why the hell not bury myself in women and decadence, right? It's the end, baby. That's what decadence is for. Why not bang a few gongs before the lights go out? But then that's, that's just how I roll."

Castiel phones Dean, eager to meet up and search for the Colt, but Dean begs that he wait until morning. Castiel agrees and continues standing, rather forlornly, on the side of a highway.

Dean wakes in the morning to find that Zachariah has zapped him five years into the future, into 2014. In appears that in 2012, Lucifer's minions re-released the Croatoan demon virus. In this post-apocalyptic world, most humans have been reduced to murderous zombies. Dean goes in search of Bobby, and finds a photo showing that Castiel is at Camp Chitaqua. When Dean arrives, he finds that Future Dean, Future Chuck and other survivors are also there.

Future Castiel informs Dean that sometime after the Croatoan virus was released, the angels left, and so did most of his angelic powers, so that Cas is now effectively human. He can however detect that Dean from 2009 is different from Future Dean. He is embittered at his situation and has immersed himself in "women and decadence". When Dean first encounters him, he is organizing an orgy, and when Dean asks if he is stoned, he says "Generally - yeah."

Future Castiel is presumably killed during the attack Dean leads on Lucifer.

When Zachariah brings Dean back to the present, he once again asks him to be Michael's vessel. When Dean refuses, Zachariah is about to take him prisoner and torture him again, but Castiel intervenes, transporting Dean to safety at the roadside where Cas has been waiting. Dean comments on his good timing, and Castiel smiles, saying "we had an appointment".

"With Lucifer risen, this child grows strong. Soon, he will do more than just make a few toys come to life—something that will draw the demons to him. The demons will find this child. Lucifer will twist this boy to his purpose. And then, with a word, this child will destroy the Host of Heaven."

Sam and Dean ask Castiel for help when they discover that Jesse Turner is a cambion, the son of Julia Wright and a demon. Castiel insists that Jesse must be killed as he is incredibly powerful, even capable of "killing the Host of Heaven with one word." Because he can transport himself anywhere Jesse cannot be held prisoner, and though Jesse is not himself evil, Castiel is unwilling to take the risk that Jesse would choose to serve Lucifer. However, when he attempts to kill the boy, Jesse turns Castiel into a small action figure. Castiel is restored when Jesse leaves and goes into hiding.

When the Trickster traps Sam and Dean in an unending series of TV shows, Castiel tries to rescue them but is banished. When he reappears, Castiel is bloodied and bruised, and says he thinks it may be something more powerful than the Trickster - who appears and again banishes him.
Finally, after the Trickster is revealed to be Gabriel, Dean gets him to bring Castiel back.

"Bobby's right. Tomorrow we hunt the devil. This is our last night on earth."

Castiel discovers the crossroads demon Crowley making a deal with a banker. He follows the demon to the house Crowley is occupying, and informs Dean of its location by phone, then reveals that the house is protected from angels by Enochian symbols. Sam and Dean recruit Ellen and Jo to help with the mission, and the four of them breach the house. Sam and Dean find Crowley and are shocked when he willingly hands over the Colt and the location of Lucifer.

The team regroups at Bobby's, and Castiel does shots with Ellen and Jo (after the latest 5 he declares that he's "starting to feel something"). The hunters prepare to take on Lucifer in Carthage, Missouri, and Bobby insists on taking a photo of them all so he has something to remember them by. The others laugh off Bobby's comment, but Castiel observes that "Tomorrow we hunt the Devil. This is our last night on earth."

When the team arrives in Missouri, Castiel sees reapers everywhere. He follows one, trying to find out why they are there and is captured by Lucifer, who imprisons Cas in a ring of flaming holy oil. Lucifer describes Castiel as a "peculiar thing," and questions him about his arrival and who he has brought with him. He tries to convince Castiel to join him, because Castiel will be Heaven's target if Lucifer is defeated, but Castiel refuses. Lucifer leaves to finish his ritual, leaving Meg to watch over Castiel. Castiel manages to loosen the fittings on an overhead pipe and uses it to knock Meg into the flaming circle. Castiel tries to cast her out of her host, but finds that without Heaven's support he is unable to do so. Meg mocks him as powerless, and Castiel throws her onto the holy fire, walking over her to escape. He arrives in time to save Sam and Dean from Lucifer.

Anna comes to Dean in a dream, telling him that she has been held prisoner in heaven after being turned in by Castiel, but has escaped. She wants Dean to meet her, but instead of Dean, Castiel arrives. He does not believe she could have escaped on her own, having himself experienced "Heaven's persuasion". He accuses her of working for Heaven against the Winchesters. Anna denies this, but insists that Sam must die so that Lucifer cannot take him as a vessel. She fails to convince Castiel, who refers to Sam as his friend. He informs her that, despite their shared experiences, if she attempts to harm Sam, he will kill her.

Later, after informing Sam and Dean of the situation, Castiel performs a ritual to determine Anna's location. He discovers that Anna has gone back in time to kill Sam and Dean's parents. Sam and Dean insist that he bring them along, but Castiel protests that time travel is extremely difficult, even with Heaven's support. Because he is outcast, he tells them that "taking this trip, with passengers no less...it'll weaken me". However, he gives in to their continued insistence and packs a satchel containing holy oil and his angel sword, then gives it to Sam. Cas touches the brothers' foreheads, and suddenly they arrive in the year 1978. Sam and Dean find Castiel slumped against a car, bleeding and breathing heavily. He insists that he is better than he expected to be, but then coughs up blood and passes out. Dean books Castiel into the honeymoon suite at a hotel to regain his strength while they fight Anna. Sam is concerned about Cas, but Dean describes him as "tough for a little nerdy dude with wings".

After Sam and Dean are returned to their time by Michael, Castiel appears in their hotel room. He does not immediately realize where he is, but when informed that he has made it back, he admits to being very surprised. He passes out, and the brothers drag him over to a bed to rest.

Sam and Dean investigate cases of people who abruptly kill themselves in odd ways near Valentine's Day. While examining the remains of the victims post-autopsy Sam notices an inscribed angel sigil on two of the hearts. Dean phones Castiel for angelic assistance. Cas appears directly in front of Dean while they are still on the phone. He recognizes the sigils as a mark of union placed on the victims by a Cupid, a lower angel called a Cherub. Castiel, Sam, and Dean go to a couple-filled restaurant, suspecting that Cupid will be drawn to the love-filled environment. While there, Cas asks to eat Dean's untouched hamburger, but before he can take a bite he senses the Cupid has arrived. Castiel traps Cupid in the back room of the restaurant and forces him to show himself.

Cupid manifests as a naked man and goes around giving Dean, Castiel and Sam enthusiastic hugs, lifting them up off the floor. Castiel informs them that this is the Cupid's way of shaking hands, and that no one likes it. The three interrogate the cherub about the strange deaths, and he begins to cry. Castiel tries to comfort him, earning another intense hug. The cherub then asks Cas to read his mind so that they will understand that he was not involved in the deaths. Cas agrees and makes eye contact with the other angel. After a moment he turns away, announcing that Cupid is telling the truth.

Later, Sam fights a demon and takes its briefcase. At their motel, Sam and Dean open the case and release a brilliant light. Castiel appears behind them, holding a paper bag of hamburgers, and explains that the brothers released a soul. As he eats the hamburgers, Castiel announces that Famine is in town and is causing the strange, starved behavior among the victims. Even Cas has been affected through his vessel, Jimmy, who craves red meat. Once strengthened by consuming souls, Famine will be able to march across the lands with authority.

Sam is incapacitated by his craving for demon blood, so Castiel and Dean search for Famine. Cas continues to eat, saying that the hamburgers make him very happy. They locate Famine, but Castiel is distracted by a tray of raw ground beef and Dean is captured. Sam arrives after killing two demons and drinking their blood. With his powers he is able to defeat Famine, but is then locked in Bobby's Panic Room by Dean and Castiel. Castiel tries to reassure Dean that Sam will be okay when the blood is out of his system, but Dean leaves.

Sam and Dean are killed, and Dean wakes up inside his Impala. Young Sam is there, and Dean realizes he's reliving a happy memory. When Dean remembers that he and Sam were shot, the memory disappears, and Dean hears Castiel's voice coming from the Impala's radio. Castiel tells Dean that he is dead and is in Heaven. He urges a confused Dean that he must follow the asphalt road in front of him if he is to find Sam. The connection between Castiel and the radio, made possible by a spell, fades, and Dean is on his own again.

Dean and Sam are reunited in a Thanksgiving memory of Sam's that takes place in an old girlfriend's house. Suddenly a bright light streams through the windows and shakes the ground, forcing Sam and Dean to hide behind furniture in the living room. When the light has passed, a TV turns on. Castiel's face appears on screen, and though the message is grainy and full of static, they can communicate. Castiel warns them "Don't go into the light," revealing that the light is actually Zachariah searching for them. Zachariah's goal is to send Sam and Dean back to Earth and convince them to say 'yes' to Lucifer and Michael. Castiel sends them on a mission to find an angel named Joshua, who resides in the center of Heaven, in Heaven's Garden. Joshua, according to Castiel, is rumored to be the angel that God speaks to, and their only chance of finding God on Earth. To find him, the brothers must follow the Road, the axis mundi, for it will lead them to Heaven's Garden. The Road weaves through Sam and Dean's memories, and they become lost and are eventually captured by Zachariah.

Joshua interrupts Zachariah with a message for Sam and Dean. He informs them that though God was the one who saved them from Lucifer and resurrected Castiel, God will not intervene to destroy Lucifer and stop the Apocalypse. Sam and Dean are returned to Earth with the knowledge that their last resort has failed. The brothers relay the devastating news to Castiel.

After being called by Sam, Castiel turns up in the brothers motel room. As he staggers forward, Sam asks if Cas is drunk. He denies this initially, then admits that he found a liquor store, then drank it. Sam asks if he is alright, and Cas motions for him to lean down and mutters "Don't ask stupid questions". When asked about the local prophet, Castiel reveals that the names of all the prophets are "seared" into his mind, and that her name is not among them. He helps the boys determine that they are dealing with the Whore of Babylon and supplies them with a stake of cypress from Babylon with which to kill her. He also informs them that only a "true servant of Heaven" can kill the Whore, and that neither he, Dean, or Sam qualifies. Castiel finds the town pastor and brings him to the brothers, who explain the situation. The pastor is shocked, and wonders why an angel like Castiel could not kill the creature. Castiel responds that he is a poor example of an angel.

Outside the motel, Castiel sits on a bench and leans forward, rubbing his forehead. Dean tosses him a large bottle of aspirin, and suggests that he take them all. They talk briefly about absent fathers. Later, Castiel is injured when the Whore of Babylon attacks him.

As Dean prepares to say yes to Michael, Castiel and Sam appear and take Dean back to Bobby's. As they argue over alternatives, Castiel is struck with a sudden pain. When asked if he's okay, Cas replies that "something’s happening" and vanishes. He arrives in a wooded area where the trees have been flattened by angelic power - the angels have resurrected someone. The ground in the center of the fallen trees pulsates and Castiel tries to help the resurrected man out of his grave. As he leans forward, an angel attacks him from behind. They fight, and another angel appears. Castiel manages to kill his assailants, and turns back to the figure struggling out of the ground. Cas pulls him out and transports him Bobby's. The others gather round, and it is revealed that the Winchesters half-brother, Adam Milligan, is the man. Castiel shields Adam with a set of Enochian sigils. The Winchesters talk with Adam, who claims that he is supposed to act as Michael's vessel. Castiel suggests that the angels have decided that Dean will not say yes, and so are turning to Adam as a back-up as he is also John Winchester's son.

While Sam, Bobby, and Castiel try to plan their course of action, they keep an eye on Adam and lock Dean in the panic room. When Castiel goes to check on him, Dean tricks him into entering the room then puts his hand to a hidden Angel Banishing Sigil, sending Castiel away and giving Dean time to escape.

Once in town, Dean approaches a street preacher and asks him to call the angels so that he can assent to Michael. Castiel appears and touches the preacher, causing him to pass out. Castiel attacks Dean, beating him severely and raging that Dean is prepared to surrender after all the sacrifices the angel has made to help the Winchesters avoid the Apocalyptic battle between Michael and Lucifer. Lying on the ground, Dean encourages Castiel to kill him, but Castiel relents and taps Dean on the shoulder, knocking him out. Cas then takes him back to Bobby's, where it is discovered that the angels have taken Adam.

Castiel determines that Adam is being held in the Green Room, and that it is heavily guarded. Castiel takes Sam and Dean to an abandoned warehouse where he says they can access the Green Room. Castiel says he can get them in there, but must fight five angels to do so. Dean suggests that the idea is suicidal. Cas agrees that it may be, but says that is preferable to watching Dean fail, and that he doesn't have the faith in Dean that Sam does. He then removes his tie and takes a box cutter from his pocket.

Inside the dark warehouse, Castiel is attacked by an angel, but defeats and kills him. Four other angels appear, and Castiel drops his sword and yells at them to attack. As they close in on him, he rips open his shirt, revealing that he has carved an Angel Banishing Sigil into his chest. As he slaps his hand to it, it releases a bright flash and sends away all the angels, including himself.

Dean receives a sudden phone call from Castiel, who disappeared at the end of 5.18 Point of No Return and has not been heard from since. Cas informs Dean that he woke up in a hospital, much to the surprise of the doctors treating him, who thought he was brain-dead. He says that he was found on a shrimping boat off Delacroix sometime after banishing himself and the other angels. Dean tells him that he is with Sam and Bobby, and that Cas should transport himself there. Castiel replies that he cannot teleport because his "batteries are drained"; he is effectively a human. He asks for money for transportation and for "more pain medication, ideally," and Dean agrees to have Bobby send it. Before hanging up, Cas apologizes to Dean for losing faith in him and believing he would turn himself over to Michael.

Dean and Sam meanwhile go after Pestilence, who is using a nursing home as a base of operations. As they approach the room where Pestilence is located, they become stricken by a variety of diseases. When they find the room they need, they are unable to do more than collapse on the floor in front of Pestilence. At this moment Castiel shows up to help, having taken a bus to this location. He enters the room and is immediately struck down by Pestilence, who eyes him with curiosity. He refers to Castiel as an "occupied vessel...but powerless." He speculates that Castiel has no spark of angel left in him, but Castiel mutters maybe a little, grabs the knife dropped by Dean and lunges at Pestilence, managing to sever his ring finger. Cas, along with Sam and Dean, is healed, and he kills a demon that was accompanying Pestilence. The Horseman vanishes, saying that they are already too late.

Later, Castiel accompanies Sam and Bobby in an attempt to destroy a building containing the Croatoan virus, which is disguised as a swine flu vaccine. On the way, Castiel is filled in on Sam's idea to say yes to Lucifer as a means of getting him back into his cage. Unlike Dean and Bobby, Castiel does not dismiss the option, saying that it may be possible and that Sam and Dean have often exceeded his expectations in the past. He also tells Sam that Lucifer's vessel would need to be strengthened by demon blood. Castiel also informs Sam that Michael is now likely using Adam Milligan for a vessel.

At the vaccine shipping facility, Castiel saves Sam from an infected human, using a shotgun for the first time and pronouncing it effective.

Sam, Dean, Bobby, and the now quasi-human Castiel have committed to the plan to trap Lucifer and return him to his cage by allowing him to enter Sam. In preparation, they drain a group of demons and bottle their blood for Sam to consume. Next, the four of them travel to Detroit.

In Detroit, Sam says his goodbyes. He asks Castiel to look after Dean and Bobby. Cas states that the request is impossible, but then realizes that he is "supposed to lie." Sam and Dean go to confront Lucifer, and Sam says "Yes." Lucifer enters him and takes hold, and Sam cannot force him into the Cage. Lucifer departs, leaving Dean to return to Castiel and Bobby. Dean asks for suggestions on what to do next, and Castiel suggests they get drunk while they wait for the end. Dean refuses to give up, however, and contacts the prophet Chuck Shurley, who gives him the location of the impending battle between Lucifer and Michael. Dean heads for the location, Stull Cemetery near Lawrence, Kansas. He interrupts the two angels before the fight, insisting on a conversation with Sam, which angers Michael. Suddenly Castiel yells at Michael to get his attention, then hurls a Molotov cocktail full of holy oil at the archangel. Michael is engulfed in flames and vanishes. Cas tells Dean that he will return, but that Dean will have time to talk to Sam.

Outraged by Castiel's audacity in attacking Michael, Lucifer obliterates him with a snap of his fingers, then kills Bobby moments later. After Dean and Sam succeed, and Lucifer (as well as Sam) and Michael are imprisoned, Castiel returns. An astonished Dean asks the angel if he is God, and Cas says no, but he believes God brought him back. Cas's angelic nature has been restored, and his powers improved. Castiel heals Dean of his injuries and brings Bobby back to life.

Castiel leaves the cemetery with Dean, riding in the Impala. Dean asks Castiel about his plans. Castiel says that Heaven must be in chaos without Michael, and that he will return to help restore order. Dean is critical of Castiel's willingness to return to Heaven in the service of God after all they have been through. Castiel believes that God likely helped them more than they suspect. Before he leaves, Cas suggests that Dean even got what he asked for: "No Paradise. No Hell. Just more of the same. I mean it Dean. What would you rather have? Peace - or freedom?"

Following a string of deaths that resemble three of the twelve plagues of Egypt, Dean prays to Castiel in the hope that he will be able to answer some of their questions. Sam is certain that the angel will not appear, because Sam has prayed to Castiel several times since he escaped Lucifer's Cage a year ago without receiving an answer. Castiel appears behind Sam, and greets the brothers, much to Sam's chagrin.

Castiel: Hello.Sam: Hello.Castiel: Yes.Sam: Hello? Hello.Castiel: That is still the term.Sam: I spent all that time trying to get through to you, Dean calls once and now it’s hello?!Castiel: Yes.Sam: So what, you like him better or something?Castiel: Dean and I do share a more profound bond. I wasn’t going to mention it.Dean: Cas, I think what he’s trying to say is that he went to hell for us. I mean he really took one for the team. You remember that? And then he comes back without a clue and you can’t take five freaking minutes to give him some answers.Castiel: If I had any answers, I might have responded but I don’t know. Sam, we have no idea who brought you back from the cage or why.

Castiel then goes on to explain that he came, not because Dean called him, but because the recent deaths have been caused by a powerful angelic weapon known as the Staff of Moses. He tells them that Heaven has been in chaos following the Apocalypse and the loss of Michael, and several of Heaven's weapons have been stolen. He asks the Winchesters for their help in finding the Staff. Together, the three of them visit the family of a boy who was murdered and then framed by the recent plague victims. They soon discover that the boy's brother, Aaron Birch, has a piece of the Staff. Castiel takes the Staff fragment from him and Aaron explains that he sold his soul to an angel in exchange for the weapon. Castiel insists that they must find the angel and the other pieces of the Staff.

Castiel teleports Sam, Dean, and an unconscious Aaron back to the brothers' motel room. He reveals that he can read the unknown angel's mark within the boy, but notes that it will be excruciatingly painful for Aaron. Dean objects, but Sam agrees that it is necessary. Castiel proceeds, and discovers the angel is Balthazar, a close friend of his who was believed to have died during the war. Before Castiel can make sense of Balthazar's actions, an angel appears and attacks him. The two fight and fall out a window, landing on Sam's car, crushing it. Castiel recovers and the second angel departs. Castiel explains that the other angel is a servant of Raphael, who is free and has gathered a following of traditionalists who wish to restart the Apocalypse. Sam surmises that the angels are in a state of civil war; Castiel admits that this is the case, and that he is ashamed of his brothers' actions. He then conducts a spell to locate Balthazar, and transports the three of them to his location.

Castiel ventures into Balthazar's suite alone and confronts him about his conduct. Balthazar explains that he is simply following in Castiel's footsteps by making his own decisions and doing whatever he likes. Castiel demands he return the stolen weapons, but Balthazar declines. They hear an indication of Raphael's arrival, and Balthazar disappears. A hostile angel attacks Castiel, who pleads for him to stand down, but is forced to kill the other angel. Raphael appears and beats Castiel mercilessly, throwing him down a flight of stairs. Just as Raphael is about to kill Castiel, Balthazar reappears and destroys Raphael's vessel using Lot's Salt. He remarks that Raphael will be too preoccupied looking for a new vessel to pose a threat anytime soon.

Before Balthazar can leave, Dean lights a hidden ring of holy oil, trapping the angel. Dean demands the return of Aaron's soul. Balthazar is furious, but agrees when Castiel refuses to interfere. After he releases the soul, Castiel frees Balthazar before Dean can demand anything else, declaring that his debt to the second angel is cleared. Balthazar and Castiel vanish.

When Dean discovers that an antique horn was recently stolen from a local music store, he theorizes that it is an angelic weapon, Gabriel's Horn of Truth, and is causing the disruption in Calumet City. He prays to Castiel, who appears immediately when Dean mentions the possibility of a holy weapon being in town. Dean is angry with him for only answering when it's in Castiel's own interest to do so, because Dean has been calling Cas for help with Sam. Dean is afraid that Sam may still be possessed by Lucifer, but Castiel tells him that the angels would feel it if Lucifer were free. He picks up a bottle and pours Dean another drink. Castiel once again tells Dean that he doesn't know what's going on with Sam, and reminds him that he is fighting a civil war.

Dean: What is wrong with him?Castiel: I don't know, Dean. I'm sorry.Dean: What happened to you, Cas? You used to be human, or at least like one. Castiel: I'm at war. Certain regrettable things are now required of me.

Dean starts to explain his theory about the Horn, and Castiel disappears before he can finish. He then reappears two seconds later and announces that the Horn of Truth is not causing the disturbance because it is not in town; he knows because he looked everywhere. Before he goes again, he tells Dean that he does want to help with Sam and that he'll make some inquiries.

Dean calls Castiel for help immediately following the events of 6.06 You Can't Handle the Truth. Sam is tied to a chair and still bloody from Dean's pummeling. Castiel takes the opportunity to ask Sam a few questions. He quickly discovers that Sam is no longer sleeping or feeling any emotions, which worries him, so Castiel performs a ritual similar to the one he used prior on Aaron Birch.[1] He reaches inside Sam's abdomen with his angelic powers, and, as it is an extremely painful experience, he has Sam bite down on his belt. What Castiel learns from the examination is that Sam's soul is missing and is likely still in Lucifer's Cage. With no other clues, they decide to head to the Campbell Compound and question Samuel Campbell, who came back from the dead at the same time that Sam escaped Lucifer's cage. Before they leave, Dean has Castiel heal Sam's earlier injuries.

At the compound, Dean questions Samuel about his resurrection, but Samuel reiterates that he doesn't remember anything before waking up alive. Dean insists that Samuel talk to their 'wingman,' and Castiel appears beside Samuel.

Samuel: This Castiel? (to Castiel) You're scrawnier than I pictured.Castiel: This is a vessel. My true form is approximately the size of your Chrysler Building.Dean: Alright, alright, quit bragging.

Castiel tests Samuel to see if he still has a soul - he does - and Castiel leaves shortly afterward. Before goes, though, he promises Dean that he will be on the lookout for something to help Sam regain his soul.

Sam prays to Castiel, and when the angel does not answer, claims that he has found the lost Ark of the Covenant. Fooled, Castiel appears to Sam and asks where it is, but is met with hostility and derision because he is unaware that Sam was referencing Raiders of the Lost Ark. Sam demands that he help them track down Crowley. Castiel informs Sam that he is in the middle of a battle but Sam doesn't care and threatens to kill Castiel if he does not help him. Castiel simply replies "You need help," but agrees to assist nonetheless by performing a spell to locate Crowley. The spell fails because Crowley is shielded. Castiel then accompanies Sam and Dean to Samuel's office in the Campbell Compound, but is asked to leave when Samuel catches them so that the family may discuss matters in private. He is later seen watching a porno and struggling to understand it while Sam and Dean do research at their hideout.

Samuel comes around and tells them where they can find the demonic prison housing the monsters, though he refuses to take part in the attempt on Crowley. Outside, they meet with Meg and three of her demon cohorts. Castiel is displeased with the notion of working with an "abomination," Meg in particular. There is a confrontation in which Sam kills one of Meg's associates, but they agree to proceed together. Alone with Dean, who is preparing for the mission, Castiel suggests that forcing Sam's soul back into his body could have catastrophic consequences for him, as Lucifer and Michael will no doubt have spent the last year tormenting him. Dean is convinced that restoring his brother is the right thing to do, however. The group infiltrates Crowley's base, a disused prison protected by demons, hellhounds, and spellwork.

Inside they are attacked by hellhounds, losing the other two demons following Meg before blocking the dogs behind a locked door and a line of salt. Deciding that she would have the best chance of holding them off, Meg tells the brothers and Castiel to find and kill Crowley. Suddenly, she kisses Castiel passionately while reaching inside his coat. To everyone's surprise, Castiel reciprocates, apparently inspired by the porno he saw earlier. When they pull away from each other, Meg is holding his Angel Killing Sword. Castiel does not object, and leaves with the brothers while Meg uses the weapon to fight the hellhounds. Castiel is not with them for long, however, as Samuel banishes him with a blood sigil.

In his absence, the Winchesters and Meg eventually manage to catch Crowley in a devil's trap, but he escapes and overpowers them all. Castiel reappears suddenly, holding a burlap bag that contains Crowley's bones. He demands to know if Crowley can genuinely retrieve Sam's soul from the cage, and the demon admits that he cannot. Castiel burns Crowley's bones with a wave of his hand, and the demon is destroyed.

At Dean's request, Castiel agrees to dispose of the remaining monsters within the prison. He then disappears after admitting that he is on the losing side of the war against the archangel Raphael and that he would prefer to be on Earth with Sam and Dean.

Sam is still unconscious over a week after Death returns his soul. Dean calls Castiel, who reads Sam's soul in the panic room. He confirms that the soul is there, but when Dean asks if Sam will ever wake up, Castiel is doubtful. He says that Sam's soul feels "skinned", and he is critical of Dean's decision to have it returned. He even tells Dean that if he wanted to kill his brother, there were other ways.

After Sam awakens, he has no memories of the past year. Dean is not willing to tell him the truth, but Sam begins to suspect that something happened during the missing year. He prays to Castiel while Dean is away. Cas appears, and rejoices to see Sam awake and alright. He even tries to hug Sam, but when Sam hesitates, Cas realizes that a hug would be awkward. The angel tells Sam that what has happened is nothing less than a miracle, and admits that he was against Dean's choice. He asks Sam how it feels, and when Sam asks what he means, Castiel reveals that Sam's soul has been put back. Sam realizes that he must have been on Earth without his soul, but hides his surprise from Castiel. Sam then says that he is a little confused about some things, and asks Castiel to talk with him about some of the things that have happened during the last year and a half. Castiel does so.

Balthazar appears to Sam and Dean, telling them that Raphael is trying to kill all of Castiel's allies in one night, and that "Cassie" is underground. He gives them a key to the angelic weapons he stole, then conducts a ritual. Sam and Dean are thrown into an alternative universe in which they are actors named Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki on a show called "Supernatural". On the television backlot, Dean prays to Castiel for help. Spotting what appears to be Cas a moment later, they rush over to talk about what has happened, only to find that it is not Castiel, but Misha, the actor that plays him on the show.

The brothers are eventually pulled back into their universe by Raphael, who was trying to bring back his assassin Virgil. Balthazar arrives, and reveals that the key he gave them is fake, and he was playing for time to move the weapons. Raphael threatens the Winchesters, but Castiel arrives. The shadows of his wings flicker on the building behind him as he tells Raphael that the "power of the weapons" is with him, and that he will kill the archangel if he remains. Raphael vanishes. Balthazar also leaves after a parting word to Castiel.

Castiel goes to the brothers and touches their shoulders, transporting them and himself to Bobby's house. Dean demands to know if Castiel was involved in Balthazar's plot to use them as decoys. Castiel says that he was not, but that if necessary he would also have used them as a distraction. Dean is angry, but Castiel reminds him again that if his side loses to Raphael, everyone loses. The brothers want Castiel to tell them about what is really going on in the war. He says that he will when he can. Then he disappears.

After Balthazar prevents the Titanic from sinking, Sam and Dean approach Atropos, one of the Fates, who is killing off the descendants of the survivors that should have died. She sets a trap for them, but they are saved at the last instant by Castiel, who transports them to Russia. He thinks that they are foolish to have tried to speak with Atropos, who is furious with them for having averted the Apocalypse and making her obsolete. He knows Atropos, and suggests that the only way to save them and the Titanic survivor descendants is to kill her, when she next tries to strike Sam and Dean.

When she does attack the brothers, and time freezes, Castiel appears. He tells Atropos that her services are no longer required, and that freedom is the better way. She is furious with him over his role in the Apocalypse and even more so over what Balthazar has done to history. Castiel suggests that Balthazar acted on his own whim, but Atropos accuses Castiel of having given the order to 'unsink' the ship. She says that Balthazar follows him, and that they were intent on creating new souls for the war in Heaven. Castiel answers her accusations evasively.

Atropos blackmails him with the lives of his "pets" - Sam and Dean. She will kill them if he does not restore the natural order, and if he kills her, her sisters will take care of the brothers. She knows that Castiel will not always be able to guard them because of the war. Castiel orders Balthazar, who has snuck up behind Atropos with a knife, to stop. He agrees that they will go back and sink the ship - again.

When Sam and Dean wake in the restored universe, they remember the alternate one as a dream. Castiel tells them it was not a dream, and he wanted them to remember their encounter with Fate. She is capricious, and he still believes that free will is worth fighting for. Dean asks if Balthazar really tried to change history because of a movie. Castiel hesitates and looks away, then says yes, that was the reason.

Dean prays to Castiel for his assistance in time traveling. He is surprised when Rachel appears instead. She says she is Castiel's friend and that he is busy with his troops, then berates Sam and Dean for calling Castiel only when they need something from him. Castiel arrives and dismisses Rachel, who is his lieutenant, saying he will handle the matter himself.

He agrees to send the brothers back to 1860 so that they can find Samuel Colt and the ashes of a Phoenix, but warns them they have only twenty-four hours. If they stay longer he cannot retrieve them. After the brothers are gone, Castiel tells Bobby to pray for him as the deadline approaches, and he will return.

Later, Castiel meets Rachel in a warehouse. She demands to know if his "dirty little secret" is true. Castiel replies that he is fighting a war. Rachel attacks him with an angel sword, stabbing him in the abdomen. Castiel fights her off and pulls his own sword. They struggle, and Castiel kills her; he murmurs "I'm sorry." Still injured, he retreats to Bobby's place and draws a sigil in blood on Bobby's refrigerator door to ward off other angels. Bobby tries to help him, and Castiel passes out.

When he awakens on Bobby's sofa, it is nearly time to bring back Sam and Dean. Castiel tells Bobby that Rachel turned on him, corrupted by Raphael. When Bobby asks him about the Winchesters, Castiel says that he is too weak to pull them back on his own. Bobby asks what they can do, and Castiel replies that the only option would be for him to touch Bobby's soul, and tap its energy. If he does it incorrectly, Bobby will explode. Bobby agrees for Sam and Dean's sake. Castiel reaches into Bobby's chest, and after a few moments Sam and Dean return.

They did not get the ashes, and ask Castiel to send them back, but he lacks the strength, and says he never wants to do that again. Fortunately, Samuel Colt gathered the ashes and arranged for their future delivery.

Bobby, Sam, and Dean need to find Eve, and intend to ask Castiel's assistance. Before Dean can call on him, Castiel appears to ask about their progress. He cannot locate Eve himself, so Sam suggests that they try to find one of the few helpful monsters they have encountered over the years. Castiel finds Lenore, and brings her to Sam and Dean. She reluctantly gives up Eve's location, then asks to be killed because she can no longer resist the urge to feed. The brothers are hesitant and try to persuade her to wait until after Eve's death, but Castiel appears behind her, places a hand on her head, and incinerates her.

Castiel transports Sam, Dean, Bobby, and himself to the city in which Eve is hiding. At the local diner, he discovers that his powers are being blocked by some outside force. Irritated, Dean calls him a "baby in a trenchcoat" without powers, and Castiel seems hurt by the comment. They pair off to search the town. Cas and Dean look for the local doctor, who reported a strange illness, but find the body of the infected patient instead. They regroup at the residence of the infectee, but Castiel soon observes that there is another person inside who looks exactly like the victim. Inside are more dead copies of the man. Before dying, one of the copies reveals that they had encountered a strange woman at a bar.

The four go to the bar to investigate and find dozens of bodies, some of them new monsters. They are interrupted when police officers burst inside. Dean hides, but Cas, Sam, and Bobby are arrested. At the station, they discover the officers are monsters. Dean attacks by surprise and between the four of them they manage to kill all but one, which they take prisoner. Cas watches while Bobby interrogates the monster. Sam and Dean find two boys tied up in a cell, and decide to take them to their uncle's house. Castiel argues that they have bigger concerns, and that the brothers should remain, but they decide to leave nonetheless.

Bobby continues the interrogation, until Castiel asks him to leave the room for five minutes. Outside, Bobby hears screaming. Castiel emerges with Eve's location, and wipes his bloody hands on a towel.

Eve is at the town diner. Sam and Dean go inside while Bobby and Cas wait as back-up. In the diner, Eve tells the brothers that Crowley remains alive and killing, and offers to let them live if they will bring him to her. Her monsters capture Cas and Bobby and bring them into the diner. Dean refuses to give in, telling Eve to "bite" him. She takes him at his word, biting his neck and drinking his blood. She is poisoned because Dean ingested phoenix ash. Her death releases Castiel. He orders the humans to shield their eyes, then raises his hands and emits a blinding flash that kills the monsters. He heals Dean, then takes them in pursuit of the two boys they 'rescued' because they are monsters.

The boys have been killed by demons. Sam and Dean reveal what Eve said about Crowley, and Cas says he will investigate. After he is gone, Sam and Bobby express their doubts about how Crowley could be alive if Cas were not somehow involved.

At the diner, Castiel looks at the bodies. Crowley approaches him, saying he is tired of cleaning up Castiel's messes.

Sitting in his favorite Heaven, the Tuesday afternoon of an autistic man who drowned in a bathtub, Castiel prays, and tells his story. He remembers a time before humanity, watching a special little fish by the seashore. He remembers the Tower of Babel, David and Goliath, and Sodom and Gomorrah. But to him, the most important event in all of history was when Sam, Dean, Bobby, and Castiel himself stopped the Apocalypse. It was a moment when he made the choice to stand up for himself and his friends, had died for it, and been brought back by God. Castiel decided to go to Hell again, this time to save Sam. He returned him to Earth, and was proud of having done so, but not all of Sam came back.

When he returned to Heaven, and told the other angels that God had given the freedom and free-will, they were confused and frightened. They did not know what to do. A few weeks passed, and Raphael summons Castiel to an audience. He orders Cas to swear loyalty to him or die, and that they will then free Michael and Lucifer. Castiel insists that the battle should not happen, and that he will not let Raphael free them. Raphael assaults Castiel in a show of power, leaving him bleeding on the ground, and reminding him that tomorrow he will swear to obey.

Castiel goes to Dean, and watches invisibly as he rakes leaves. Castiel needs help, but thinks that after all Dean has sacrificed it would be wrong to ask for more. As he continues to watch, Crowley appears beside him. He asks to speak with the angel about the situation, and hints at a possible deal. Castiel rebuffs him, saying he has no soul to sell. Crowley persists, and Castiel, believing himself to be safe from the demon's machinations because he is, after all, an angel, goes along. He later admits that he may have been a fool to do so.

Crowley takes Castiel to the remade Hell he rules, where instead of being tortured, everyone stands in line eternally. Crowley knows the situation with Raphael, and Castiel is prepared to given in rather than die. Crowley suggests that God brought Castiel back for a reason, and that reason was most likely to prevent just this. He should fight back. Castiel is hesitant to start a civil war, especially as he lacks the power to fight Raphael. Crowley has an idea for tapping the untouched well of souls in Purgatory. They could split the souls they find there, so that Castiel can do what God must have intended, and Crowley can strengthen his own tenuous position; he feels he is a better ruler for Hell than most, especially where Castiel is concerned. Castiel hesitates, saying that Crowley's plan would take months, and he has only a day. Crowley tempts him with one more offer: 50,000 souls from Hell to use in facing Raphael. Castiel agrees, and admits to being "prideful" when he banished Raphael the next day, and started the war.

He has been working with Crowley ever since, and the Winchesters are suspicious. Castiel still thinks of himself as their protectors. After Eve's death Crowley and Castiel discuss matters over her body. Crowley is angry that she was killed, as there is little she can do to open Purgatory for them as a corpse. He yells at Castiel for putting his "pets" first, and thinks they should just be killed to simplify matters. Castiel refuses, and threatens Crowley if he dares to hurt them.

Castiel, unseen, watches the Winchesters and Bobby as they hunt Crowley through his minions. They also discuss whether or not Cas is "Superman who's gone darkside". They find out about a demon named Ellsworth who will know Crowley's location, and head out, but Castiel gets there first, killing the demons and getting rid of the evidence. He does not know if he did it to protect the brothers or himself. He watches in hiding as his friends puzzle over the empty house, and does not answer when they pray to him. Three of Crowley's demons attack, and Castiel shows himself, killing them. He admits to Sam, Dean, and Bobby, that Crowley is alive, and he is not sure how he could have been tricked. Their fears are eased, and they say that they had suspected Castiel. Castiel says it would be ridiculous for him to work with Crowley, for "Superman" to go evil. He does not realize his error. Castiel addresses Crowley again, making his point about the Winchesters' safety more strongly.

Later Sam, Dean, and Bobby summon him, and trap him in a ring of holy fire. Dean asks him directly if he has been working with Crowley, and Castiel cannot bring himself to lie. They are angry with him. Castiel tries to defend his actions, saying he has done this for them, and that he rescued Sam. Sam is not consoled, and reminds him he did a poor job. Dean tells him that working with a demon is wrong no matter what, and that he should have come to them. Castiel knows that he could have benefited from Dean's advice back then. A cloud of demons approaches and Castiel tells them to run. They do, and Crowley appears to Cas. He did not harm the Winchesters, and he frees Castiel. He tries to remind Castiel of their goals, but Castiel is angry and does not want to be in his presence. Crowley accuses him of not recognizing what he has become.

Castiel comes to Dean at Bobby's house. Dean says once again that it is a bad idea for Castiel to work with a demon, and asks him to stop. Castiel is like a brother to him, one of the three people he holds most dear. But he will stop him if he must. Castiel thinks there is little Dean, as a human, can do. Dean reminds him that he has had success with stronger adversaries. Nonetheless, Castiel feels compelled to continue fighting his way. Both are sorry to have come to this.

In his favorite Heaven, Castiel finishes his story. He begs God for a sign, for some guidance about whether he is right or wrong. Otherwise, he will do whatever is necessary to win this war.

Castiel has taken one of the Campbell diaries, and is investigating an incident in which H.P. Lovecraft opened a portal to another world. He gets to two sources just ahead of Bobby.

Sam prays for him, telling Cas that Lisa and Ben have been kidnapped by Crowley, and asks for help. Castiel listens unseen, and does not answer, but goes to confront Crowley. He insists that the demon not harm Lisa and Ben, but Crowley refuses to make such a promise. He tells Cas to continue investigating, and the angel receives a summons, then leaves.

Balthazar has called him. He asks Cas if he is working with Crowley; Cas lies that he is not, but Balthazar is not fooled. He is concerned that Castiel will act as the vessel for the souls if he manages to unlock Purgatory, and could explode, destroying part of Earth. Castiel asks if he is with him, or not. Balthazar says he is.

Castiel goes to Dean, arriving just in time to save him from a demon. He apologizes for Lisa and Ben, revealing that he did not know Crowley's plan. Dean is skeptical, and angry. Castiel asks him again to support his decision to tap the souls in Purgatory. He pleads with him that he has always done what the brothers needed him to, asking little in return. Cas asks them to trust in him, and promises to bring him his family afterward. Dean is unwilling, and Castiel leaves.

After Dean and Sam rescue Lisa, Castiel comes to the hospital where the gravely injured Lisa is not expected to survive. He apologizes again, but Dean is not forgiving. Castiel says that he did not a come for Dean, then places a hand on Lisa's forehead, healing her. Both Dean and Cas acknowledge that this does not change their situation, but Dean asks for an additional favor. Castiel removes all Lisa and Ben's memories of Dean.

Later Castiel finds and takes Dr. Visyak, the creature he needs to open Purgatory.

Castiel and Crowley torture Dr. Visyak until they obtain what they need to open Purgatory. She escapes and contacts Bobby and the Winchesters, telling her story before dying in an alley. Castiel comes to the three hunters, who are outraged. Dean tries to argue with him again, but Cas cuts him off, saying he no longer cares about Dean's opinion. He then touches Sam's head, breaking the mental wall, and promising to repair him as long as Dean stops the opposition.

Castiel meets with Crowley, who has assembled the necessary ingredients. The angel wants to renegotiate their deal. He will not give Crowley the souls, so Crowley can either flee or die. The demon leaves Castiel with the blood for the ritual.

Later, Castiel confronts Balthazar. He says that Dean is coming, and someone among them is a traitor. Balthazar asks him who it is, and Castiel lies that he does not know, and wants Balthazar to investigate. While the other angel is distracted, Castiel stabs and kills him.

Just before the ritual is meant to begin, a cloud of demons descends around the building, and Crowley appears. Castiel tries to kill him, but cannot. He has a new partner in Raphael. Castiel is surprised at the partnership with their differing goals, but both seem to think they have taken the best course available. They demand the blood; Castiel throws them a jar and leaves.

Crowley conducts the ritual, and though Bobby and Dean try to interrupt, completes it. Nothing happens and Castiel reappears. Crowley realizes that he switched the blood, and conducted his own ritual. Castiel displays his power briefly in a flash of energy. Crowley disappears, and Raphael asks for mercy. Castiel snaps his fingers, obliterating Raphael.

He turns to Dean and Bobby. He was right, he says, and did save them. Dean nervously agrees, then suggests that Castiel should return the souls, and disarm himself. Castiel says he has Raphael's followers to deal with. Dean is worried, and reminds Castiel that he is family, and he doesn't want to lose him. Castiel says that he has no family anymore; he will not give up the souls. Sam stabs him from behind with an angel sword, but nothing happens. Castiel greets him, then says the sword will not work because he is not an angel anymore. He says that he is their new God, and that they must venerate him, or be destroyed.

Castiel waits for Sam, Dean, and Bobby to show their respects. Bobby goes to his knees, and motions for Sam and Dean to do the same. Dean begins to kneel, but Castiel stops him, and orders Bobby to stand, saying that there is no point if they do not mean what they do. Castiel observes, without turning to look, that Sam is not doing well. Dean reminds Cas that the former angel promised to fix Sam when it was over. Castiel cuts him off; his promise was contingent on Dean not opposing him further, and oppose him Dean did. Castiel tells them he has no need to kill them, though he no longer has any regard for them, and will let them live if they do not plot against him.

Castiel releasing the absorbed souls back to Purgatory.

Castiel sets out to right the wrongs he sees. He destroys Raphael's followers in Heaven, and tells the angels that he no longer thinks free will is what Heaven needs. Instead, he will give them a firm hand. He appears in a church, reveals his identity, and smites a hypocritical preacher. He leaves an image of himself in the stained glass as he departs, and accidentally burns a pew as welts appear on his hand. He finds Crowley hiding in a RV, and tells him that he may retain his position as King of Hell, but that Castiel will choose which souls he receives. He leaves after looking at yet more open places on his skin. He gives money to a blind man on the street, and heals the man for his faith. The man is grateful, but surprised when his first sight is of Castiel's blistering face.

Castiel looks at himself in a mirror, growing concerned. He hears a voice inside him calling his name; it wants to come out, it wants him to let it out. It pushes at his skin from the inside. Castiel says no.

Sam, Dean, and Bobby summon Crowley, who reluctantly gives them a spell to bind Death. They work it, and an irritated Death appears, followed shortly by Castiel. Dean orders Death to kill "god." Death says he sees only a mutated angel, one whose vessel is disintegrating. Castiel, sounding uncertain, says he will heal himself when his works are complete. Death replies that Castiel swallowed leviathans when he emptied Purgatory, not just souls, and that is the danger. Castiel frees Death from Dean's binding spell.

Castiel leaves. At a political election office campaigning for a senator of whom Castiel disapproves, he is stopped by one of her aids. Castiel asks the man to see that he is a good god, that he means the best for his children. He awakes some time later in a pool of blood on the floor. He has slaughtered the entire office.

At Bobby's place, Sam prays for Castiel to reconsider and give up the souls. A few minutes later Castiel appears, disheveled, bloody, and looking ill. He says he needs their help.

Back at the laboratory, they work the ritual to open Purgatory. Castiel is growing weaker and weaker, and Dean has to stand him up in front of the portal. As it opens, Castiel turns to Dean and says he is sorry. The souls leave him through the portal, and he collapses.

Dean and Bobby cannot find a pulse, and fear him to be dead. After a moment, Castiel's face heals, and he awakens. Dean and Bobby stand him up. He thanks them for their help, but Dean says they were trying to save the world. Castiel promises to find some way of redeeming himself before Dean. Dean is dismissive, and Castiel insists more firmly. They start to leave, but Castiel doubles over in pain, yelling that something held on inside him and did not leave.

His body is overtaken by the Leviathans, who tells the Winchesters and Bobby that Castiel is not there anymore.

Dean and Bobby are confronted with one of many Leviathans that is occupying Castiel's vessel; however, Jimmy Novak's body cannot contain them all. It is rapidly deteriorating and so, rather than finish them off, the leviathans retreat. Dean and Bobby follow and find Sam, who is caught up in a hallucination involving Lucifer. Dean snaps Sam out of the hallucination, and the three of them follow the Leviathans, still occupying Castiel's vessel, to a nearby reservoir.

Castiel's vessel wades into the reservoir and, as they watch, disappears beneath the surface. A vortex then erupts outwards and spreads a black ooze throughout the water which vanishes moments later. Bobby remarks that, now that they're in the pipes, the Leviathans will be able to travel anywhere. Dean finds Castiel's trench coat floating in the water, but there is no other sign of the angel's vessel; the hunters assume that he has been destroyed by the Leviathans. Dean takes the trench coat with him as they leave the reservoir. Later Bobby tries to get Dean to talk about how he is coping with Castiel's death, along with everything else, but Dean refuses to talk.

Dean is trying to find help for Sam, who has been hospitalized due to a psychotic break episode. It has been brought on by his hallucinations of Lucifer, which have plagued him since Castiel bought down the protective barrier in his mind. While searching for help, Dean speaks to a hunter called Mackey. He tells Dean he had heard stories of a healer called Emanuel. Suspicious, he tracked him down through his wife Daphne Allen in Colorado, and set traps in case the healer turned out to be a monster. When Emanuel visited him, he was unaffected by the tests, and touched Mackey, restoring the sight in his damaged eye.

Dean travels to Colorado, and finds Daphne being held captive by a demon, which he kills. "Emanuel" returns home, and to Dean's shock appears to be Castiel, although he gives no sign of recognizing Dean. Emanuel can see the demon's true face, and is shocked when Dean tells him demons walk the Earth. He agrees to go with Dean, and see if he can help Sam.

During the drive to the Northern Indiana State Hospital, Emanuel reveals he has no memories of his life before a few months ago. One day when out hiking, Daphne found him wet and naked by a river, with no memory of who he was. She claimed that God led her to him, and took him home. Using the site bouncingbabynames.com, she helped him choose the name Emanuel. They later married, and she supports his work as a healer.

When Emanuel asks about Sam's illness, Dean says that Sam's state is due to something done by a person called "Cas," a name which provokes no response in Emanuel. He recognizes that Dean feels betrayed by Cas, and asks if Dean killed him. Dean replies that he did not, and reveals that he has not been able to get over what was done. Emanuel reminds Dean that "you are not a machine," and that his reluctance is reasonable.

Stopping at a market, Dean is attacked by more demons, and unexpectedly saved by Meg. She explains she has been looking for the healer called Emanuel, as have the other demons. While Dean is suspicious of her, she points out that they are both enemies of Crowley, and she can help protect Castiel. Emanuel is surprised that Dean would bring a demon with them, but the three of them continue on together.

When they arrive at Northern Indiana State Hospital, it is surrounded by demons. Meg takes Dean aside; she wants to tell Emanuel who he really is, so he can kill the demons, but Dean warns they don't know how he will react. However, Emanuel overhears their conversation. Meg tells him he is an angel and that he and Dean used to be friends. "That sounds pleasant" he replies, but Dean counters that it isn't, that angels are violent and corrupt. Emanuel still doesn't remember anything, but agrees to try and help.

Emanuel agrees to try killing the demons, and walks down to where they are gathered outside the hospital. As he places a hand to each one's head, killing it, his memories of his time as an angel come flooding back. After he has killed them all, he walks away. Dean goes after him, and Castiel says he has remembered the terrible things he did - all the killing in Heaven and on Earth, and that he is responsible for Sam's condition. He despairs that he can't fix what he did, and should not have survived, but Dean counters that maybe that was why he was brought back. Dean goes to the trunk of his car and takes out Castiel's trench coat, which he has carried with him all this time.

Castiel enters the hospital, and saves Sam from a demon giving him electroshock. Castiel apologies for what he did to Sam, and tries to heal him, but Sam's hallucinations remain. Later, as they visit Sam in his room where he appears worse, Castiel tells Dean that Sam's mind is too damaged and that is can't be healed. He then has an idea. He apologizes to Sam a final time before taking all the psychosis from Sam's mind into his own. Castiel immediately starts to hallucinate Lucifer.

Sam and Dean leave Castiel in the hospital, for his own safety. Sam challenges Dean that working with Meg is too much like a demon deal, but Dean says he doesn't think they have much choice. Meanwhile, Meg meets with Dr. Kadinsky and is hired as a nurse so she can, hopefully, watch Castiel.

Castiel awakens in the mental hospital as Sam and Dean uncover the Word. Meg is there, and calls the brothers the next morning to let them know what has happened, saying that Castiel is "different." When the brothers arrive, Castiel attempts to joke with them, and seems unbalanced. Dean in particular is not amused his joke or the random information he spouts. The brothers ask him to look at the tablet they have recovered, and Castiel tells them it was written by Metatron, and that he cannot read it, as it was not meant for angels. Dean and Meg argue, and their confrontation upsets Castiel, who disappears. The Word is dropped, and broken.

Dean finds Castiel in the hospital day room, seated at a table. Dean reproaches him for breaking the tablet, and reminds him of his past wrongs. Castiel holds up the board game Sorry, and invites Dean to play. Dean questions him, but Castiel does not give him the answers he is looking for. Suddenly, Castiel announces that Sam is talking to angels.

He reappears in his hospital room, and sees Hester and Inias, who have come for the prophet Kevin Tran. Castiel greets the, and they are shocked to see him alive. Hester is furious. Castiel tries to come up with something to say to them, but is unable to find the words. Dean, meanwhile, has drawn an angel banishing sigil on the wall outside, and uses it to send all the angels away.

Some time later, while Meg, Kevin, Sam, and Dean are driving, Castiel calls Meg. She has some difficulty understanding him, but realizes eventually that he is at a dog track in Perth, Australia, and gives him the coordinates of their car. Castiel teleports in, terrifying Kevin. They settle at Rufus's Cabin, where Kevin translates.

Meg sneaks out to kill a couple of demons that spotted them at a gas station earlier, and is trapped by Sam and Dean when she returns. They suspect her of treachery. Castiel clears her, but reveals that in killing the demons she alerted the angels to their location. Inias and Hester appear, throwing Meg through a wall. Hester rounds on Castiel, accusing him of having stolen the prophet. She beats him, yelling at him for what he did, especially the introduction of free will. She pulls out her blade to kill him, but is stabbed from behind by Meg.

Inias takes charge of the subordinate angels that accompanied them, and the prophet. He invites Castiel to rejoin them in their garrison, but Castiel declines, saying he is no longer part of it.

Sam and Dean read through Kevin's translation, and discover that as part of the weapon against Leviathans, they need the blood of a fallen angel. Castiel smiles, and holds out a glass vial, saying "I'm always happy to bleed for the Winchesters." They ask him what he will do now, and Cas replies "I don't know. Isn't that amazing?" before he vanishes.

Worried when he can no longer hear the angels' voices, Castiel discovers that his entire garrison has been wiped out, and makes Meg take him to the Winchesters. He approves of the bone they have chosen for the weapon against Leviathans, and then informs them of what happened. Crowley arrives and is shocked to see Castiel, who he believed to be dead. He is confrontational until he realizes Castiel is insane, because there is no fun in fighting a lunatic and agrees to put off their feud until later. Crowley turns his attention to Meg, but Castiel steps forward to defend her and Crowley leaves her be, saying they need Castiel's cooperation to defeat Dick Roman.

Castiel is happy to fetch safe food for the brothers, but refuses to fight, and won't tell Sam and Dean what Crowley meant. After they learn that Dick has had other leviathans take on his form, they again look to Castiel to explain, but he dodges the question and heads off to play Twister. After he leaves, Meg explains that due to his brief stint as the vessel for all the leviathans, Castiel possesses the ability to tell them apart even in their various human disguises, making him the only one able to pick out which Dick is the real one.

After sadly watching Sam and Dean burn Bobby's flask, Castiel takes Dean to the Impala. There, Castiel explains his guilty feelings, that he feels his resurrections are a punishment, and he believes he's bad luck. This doesn't matter to Dean, who would rather have Castiel fighting with him than not. Castiel realizes that Dean forgives him, and Dean admits it, saying he might as well since he will likely die in the fight to come. Castiel finally agrees to join Sam and Dean and promises to do his best before asking what the plan is. Dean tells him they will announce themselves "big."

The next day, while Meg creates a distraction by crashing the Impala into SucroCorp, Sam, Dean and Castiel sneak in. Castiel and Dean search for Dick, and find him in the lab. There, they confront Dick, who taunts Castiel about letting the leviathans onto Earth. When Dick tries to bluff that he isn't the real Dick, Dean points out that Castiel can tell and Castiel attacks Dick, only to be thrown into the wall behind him. After Dean uses a decoy bone to stab Dick, Castiel pulls the Leviathan's head back, allowing Dean to stab Dick through the neck with the real bone, killing him. However, when Dick's soul gets dragged to Purgatory, Castiel and Dean are pulled along with him.

Castiel wakes the unconscious Dean, and after telling him they are more likely to die than get out, disappears.

When Dean escapes Purgatory with the help of Benny, Castiel is not with him. Dean later tells Sam that Castiel "didn't make it." Dean mentions "something happened to him down there." and that as things got hairy towards the end, Castiel "just let go." Sam asks whether Castiel is dead and Dean saw him die, but Dean only responds "I saw enough." While Dean does not elaborate, this clearly affects him.

In a flashback, Dean is seen searching for Castiel. Later, Benny offers Dean a deal - if Dean takes his soul with him, Benny will show him a way out of Purgatory that only humans can use. Dean agrees, but stipulates that they find Castiel first.

In flashbacks, Dean and Benny interrogate a rugaru with information on Castiel's location in Purgatory. Dean forces the creature to reveal that Cas might be found near a stream some distance away. They dispatch the monster, and travel to the place he described. Cas is there, disheveled and unshaven and apparently sane again, though he does go off on a tangent once. Dean embraces him, but Castiel is not happy to have been found by Dean. Benny accuses Castiel of abandoning Dean, and Dean insists that Castiel must have been attacked. Castiel admits that he ran away. Leviathans have been hunting him, there is a bounty on him, and he hoped to keep them away from Dean.

Dean tells him that Benny knows of a way to leave, and Dean wants him to go with them, but Castiel believes it is too dangerous. The worst of the monsters will follow him. Dean pleads with him, insisting that he will not leave without Cas. The angel relents, and goes with them.

In the present, Dean meets an angel at the auction where the second Word tablet is to be sold. The angel asks him about Castiel's fate, and Dean tells him that Cas did not make it back from Purgatory. The angel reveals that other angels believe that whatever Castiel's failures, his heart was always in the right place. Dean asks the angel for his own opinion. He replies that to him, too much heart was Castiel's downfall.

In a final flashback, Castiel is on the ground reaching out, and calling for Dean's help. Dean tries to hold onto him, but loses his grip.

In flashbacks Castiel, Dean and Benny come under attack by monsters and Castiel kills one with his powers. Castiel and Benny warn that it may not be possible for Castiel to get out and he is drawing monsters to them by being close to them. Both Castiel and Benny push for Dean to leave him behind, but Dean refuses to abandon his friend. Before they can argue further, Castiel senses Leviathans closing in on them and they are too close for him to teleport them out. They run, but come under attack by two Leviathans. Dean decapitates one, but the other one nearly kills Castiel before Benny decapitates her, saving Castiel to Dean's shock.

Flashbacks:In Purgatory, Castiel, Dean and Benny near the location Benny has been told holds the portal out and Dean argues with him about it, asking if he's sure that he wasn't lied to and Castiel indicates his lack of faith as well when asked if he wasn't supposed to be all about faith as an angel. Castiel again brings up the fact that as an angel he might not be able to make it through, but before they can discuss it more, the portal opens nearby in response to Dean's presence. Dean casts a spell that absorbs Benny's soul into his arm and he and Castiel head for the portal, but Castiel stops him, sensing two Leviathans which attack. Dean gets knocked down, leaving Castiel to fight them off by himself. Castiel is able to hold them off, but is unable to defeat them. However, while they are distracted with Castiel, Dean decapitates one from behind and Castiel holds the other one in place so Dean can decapitate that one as well. The two quickly head for the portal which is on top of a ridge and closing, but Castiel lets go of Dean, wanting to stay in Purgatory and tells him to go. Before Dean can do anything, the portal closes with him in it, leaving Castiel behind. However, Dean remembers it as losing his grip on Castiel and accidentally leaving him behind

In the present, Dean sees Castiel on the side of a roadway and outside a cabin he and Sam are staying in, but when he looks closer, Castiel is gone. Finally, Castiel appears in person to Dean in the cabin's bathroom and collapses from the teleport, having been weakened by his time in Purgatory. Castiel explains that he'd been trying to reach out to Dean, but had been too weak to do it, which is apparently why Dean kept seeing him. Castiel is unaware of how he got out of Purgatory, explaining that one minute he was on the run from the Leviathans and the next he was on a roadside in Indiana. Castiel cleans up as Sam and Dean discuss the suspicious nature of his return, which Dean doesn't believe he could've done on his own given the condition he was in Purgatory. As Sam and Dean discuss the case, Castiel watches TV and recognizes the names of the people they are looking for as future prophets. Castiel explains how there can only be one Prophet at a time and that since Kevin is one, Chuck must be dead, though he doesn't know how. This causes them to realize that Crowley is getting desperate in his search for a way to translate the Word of God.

After getting a call from Linda Tran, Sam, Dean and Castiel travel to a location to meet her and Dean calls Castiel out of the car to talk to him about his escape from Purgatory. Dean repeatedly tells Castiel he didn't leave him behind and to Castiel's confusion, he realizes that Dean blames himself for Castiel being left behind in Purgatory. Before they can discuss it anymore, Linda arrives with a demon she captured who can tell them where to find Crowley and the prophets.

Castiel joins Sam and Dean in their assault to rescue Kevin Tran and the other prophets. During the assault, Dean gets knocked down by a demon and Castiel faces off against it. When the demons uses its powers on him, Castiel is slightly affected in his weakened state, but kills the demon, which exhausts him. Reaching the outside of the locked room where Kevin is, Castiel senses that Kevin is in trouble and teleports in to face Crowley. Castiel draws his angel sword to fight the demon while Crowley draws one of his own, believing that Castiel is bluffing in his clearly weakened state. Castiel draws upon his power to smite the King of Hell, causing him to glow and his wings to appear. At first Crowley continues to believe Castiel is bluffing, but realizing that he is serious, tries to escape with the Word of God. To prevent this, Castiel smashes the tablet in half and Crowley only gets away with half of it. Once Crowley is gone, Castiel collapses as Dean enters.

Outside, Castiel, who believes he can fix Kevin's cut-off finger, discusses with Dean his escape from Purgatory. Realizing that Dean has blocked out the truth, Castiel uses his powers to show him what really happened when Dean escaped, explaining that he wanted to stay in Purgatory as his penance and it was never Dean's fault, stunning Dean as Sam joins them.

Suddenly, Castiel appears in an office where he sees a woman. The woman explains that she is an angel named Naomi and that this is a part of Heaven few, including Castiel have ever been to before. Naomi explains that the angels rescued Castiel from Purgatory, though it cost many their lives and asks what the Winchesters are up to. To Castiel's surprise, he casually explains about how the tablet is broken in two and how the Winchesters plan to go after it. Naomi orders Castiel to come when the Winchesters call and to aid them in any way they need. She also tells Castiel that he will periodically check in with her, which she refers to as his penance and tells him that he will not remember or even realize he was gone before sending him back.

Back with Sam and Dean, they explain that they want to go after Crowley and get the other half of the Word of God tablet and ask Castiel to join them. Castiel agrees.

Castiel, who has muted his ability to hear what other angels are saying in his head asks Sam and Dean to become a hunter like them and brings them a case he has found in a newspaper: a man's heart literally burst out of his chest. Sam and Dean reluctantly agree to train him, but insist on him riding in the Impala with them rather than teleporting. Castiel agrees, but is annoyed that he can't sit "shotgun" like he wants.

At the morgue, Castiel uses his supernatural senses to tell everything about the man's health, which annoys Dean and is surprised when Sam reveals the man was having an affair which Castiel was unable to tell with his abilities. While questioning the man's wife who they believe to be a witch, Castiel decides to play "bad cop" and angrily demands to know why she killed her husband before Dean calms him down. It turns out the wife knew about the affair and was having one of her own as part of a deal between her and her husband which rules her out as a suspect. They later visit a scene where a man committed suicide, but stayed in the air for a minute before falling. Sam and Dean liken it to cartoons, but Castiel is just confused by what they mean and their explanation.

At a motel, Castiel watches cartoons and believes he finally understands them, but clearly is wrong in his beliefs about what they mean. Unable to find a connection between the two victims, Sam and Dean decide to go to sleep and Castiel, who doesn't need to sleep tells them he plans to watch over them. Just then, Castiel, who is mentally tuned into the police band, learns that a bank has been robbed and tells Sam and Dean that it "sounds Looney."

The three travel to the bank where they find that a one-ton anvil has crushed a security guard and that the bank was robbed with the robber getting away clean, leaving a black hole drawn on the wall and on the safe deposit box he robbed. After Sam leaves to look at the files on other similar robberies, Dean has Castiel move the anvil to find an X marked on the ground underneath it. Dean explains how in cartoons stuff like this happens and how in cartoons a drawn black hole can be used as a door, which allowed the robber to get in and out with what he wanted. However, Dean and Castiel discover that for some reason the "door" is no longer working.

At the motel, Castiel reads John's Journal and compliments his handwriting. Dean expresses worry that about Castiel's state after his return from Purgatory and asks him to go check in Heaven to see what the angels have to say about his return, but Castiel angrily refuses when he insists. Castiel explains that while he caused a lot of suffering on Earth when he declared himself God, he devastated Heaven and killed thousands of his own kind. Castiel fears that if he goes back to Heaven and sees the devastation he has wrought, he will kill himself out of his remorse over it. Before they can discuss the subject anymore, Sam returns and shows them that wherever there was a robbery, reality was warped for fifty yards around it for five to ten minutes, causing the weird effects including various minor ones, all based off cartoons. All of the belongings that were stolen belonged to people at the Sunset Hill Retirement home and the three decide to go check it out, believing their thief might be there. When Dean tells them to gear up because "it’s wabbit season," Castiel doesn't get the reference and tells him he didn't pronounce it correctly.

At the retirement home, Sam, Dean and Castiel question the residents on the loss of their valuables. Castiel and Dean question an old woman named Mrs. Tate who flirts with a clearly uncomfortable Castiel who she says reminds her of her third husband. After Mrs. Tate tells them that a cat belonging to one of the resident's talks sometimes, Castiel decides to interrogate the cat. When Sam and Dean call him to follow them, Castiel tells them that he's close to cracking the cat and tells the cat he's not through with him before leaving. Unknown to him, the cat calls him a "dumbass" once he goes. The three visit the room of Fred Jones, a psychokinetic Sam and Dean are familiar with and believe to be causing the crazy happenings with his ability to reshape reality. Dean is able to prove the theory by hitting himself in the head with a book, but when Castiel questions killing Fred to solve the problem, he gets them thrown out. Castiel offers to go back and teleport Fred out, but Sam and Dean decide to play it more low-key as with Fred's powers, Castiel could be adversely affected. Sam and Dean decide to return that night and have Castiel stay there invisible to keep an eye on Fred. After a cake explodes, Castiel calls Sam and Dean back, but they learn that while he was distracted, Fred has disappeared. While trying to figure out what to do, Mrs. Tate tells Castiel that a bracelet a nurse is wearing was one of the things stolen from her and Castiel asks where the nurse got it from.

After learning that the nurse's boyfriend gave the bracelet to her, they travel to his apartment where they find him lying on the floor, shot in the gut. At Dean's request, Castiel heals the wound and the man explains that he learned of Fred's powers by accident and told Doctor Mahoney at the home. Mahoney, who has been stealing from the home for years and the man worked together to rob people using Fred's powers to access their hiding places, but when the man found out Mahoney planned to rob the bank one more time then kill Fred, he protested and was shot. Castiel, Sam and Dean leave to go back to the bank and Castiel wonders if Fred knows what's going on, but Dean tells him Fred seems to be living in a dream world, unaware of anything.

At the bank, Castiel and Sam search for Fred while Dean enters the bank to deal with Mahoney. Searching the parked cars nearby, Castiel senses Fred's power and is able to find him. Fred is unresponsive and when Sam expresses a desire to be able to talk to him, Castiel enters Fred's mind and pulls Sam with him.

In Fred's mind, which initially looks like a cartoon and shifts occasionally, Castiel explains what he did to Sam and watches as Sam confronts Fred and tries to convince him to wake up. While Fred doesn't believe it, Castiel tells him that what Sam is telling him is true. Castiel listens as Sam explains how living in a dream world is nice for awhile, but you can't run from something forever and that when it catches up, if you don't wake up, trying to keep the dream alive will destroy you. Sam's speech clearly effects Castiel while it convinces Fred to wake up from his dream world.

Castiel, Sam and Fred quickly enter the bank to help Dean and Castiel watches as Fred forces Mahoney to kill himself. Fred expresses fear that as he ages further, he will lose control again and cause more chaos and pain and asks for a way to stop it forever. Castiel offers to remove Fred's power, but warns that it will be painful and dangerous and if he does it, he's not sure how much of Fred will be left. After a brief hesitation, Fred agrees and asks Castiel to do it.

Castiel removes Fred's powers and they return him to the retirement home where he is left in a mentally distant state. However, Castiel is able to tell that Fred is happy nonetheless and listening to "Ode To Joy" in his mind. Dean compliments Castiel on his actions and even offers to let him ride shotgun in the Impala, but Castiel refuses.

As Castiel starts to explain why he can't come with Sam and Dean, he is pulled to Heaven where he meets with Naomi again. Naomi refuses to let Castiel return to Heaven as he wants and Castiel tries to convince her to allow it, explaining that he has been trying to escape what he has done, but has realized that he has to return to make things right. Naomi tells him that he is making things right by doing what he's told, but that unless she summons him, he stays out of Heaven. When Castiel asks what he should do, Naomi asks him what he wants to do, causing him to give it careful consideration for the first time.

Back with Sam and Dean, Castiel tells them that he will stay and watch over Fred for a few days to make sure he is safe but he is unsure what he will do after that, he has accepted that he can't run from what he did anymore. Sam and Dean leave and Castiel takes a seat next to Fred, listening to "Ode to Joy" with him.

As his penance, Castiel has turned back on his "angel radio" and is now helping people in need. Sensing a baby girl very sick with the doctors unable to figure out what's wrong with her, Castiel travels to a park where she is with her mother, crying and heals her illness. Before the mother can thank him, Castiel disappears.

Castiel is summoned by Naomi to Heaven where she reveals that she has gotten a distress call from Samandiriel. Castiel is shocked as he believed the angel to be dead, but Naomi explains that he is merely missing. Castiel tells Naomi that he will need help as Crowley will have warded his base with Enochian symbols to protect against angels and Naomi tells him to take whatever he needs, but orders him to make it seem like his idea to the Winchesters.

Castiel finds Dean asleep and without Sam and startles him. Castiel explains the situation and asks where Sam is, but Dean tells him that Sam is not there at the moment and that they will do this without him. Castiel explains that all he knows is that Samandiriel is in the vicinity of Hastings, Nebraska, but doesn't know more than that. After he explains that an angel in distress can cause weird effects on the environment and that he needs Dean's help as he may need to interact with people, Dean starts a search for information on the Internet.

After learning of a man who heard a voice from a bush that burst into flames in Geneva, Nebraska, Dean and Castiel travel there and pose as reporters to question the man. He reveals the words he can remember and Castiel recognizes it as Enochian translating into "I obey." Believing that Samandiriel must be close, Dean and Castiel search nine nearby factories and find the right one when Castiel recognizes homeless men nearby as demons and can't sense anything in the factory. Realizing they are outnumbered, Dean decides to go to Kevin Tran for help to create more demon bombs.

Dean and Castiel visit Kevin in Garth's houseboat and ask for the ingredients. Kevin is annoyed as the ingredients are very rare and nearly impossible to find, but Castiel takes a list and looks for them anyways. Castiel is able to gather all of the needed ingredients, but also gets Sam despite Dean's insistence against it as they need all the help they can get. Recognizing that there are issues between Dean and Sam, Castiel yells at them to pull it together and work together on the problem.

The three travel to the warehouse where Samandiriel is and Castiel shows them the symbol they need to neutralize in four places so he can enter. He also gives Sam his angel sword as it can kill demons as well as angels. Castiel stays behind as the two enter the warehouse and neutralize the symbols and demons inside. Once the symbols have been painted over, Castiel is able to enter the warehouse but is left weakened by the other symbols so Sam gives him back his sword. As Sam and Dean try to break down the door to the room where Samandiriel is being tortured, the sounds of the torture trigger a flashback where Castiel remembers Naomi having him tied down to a chair and approaching his eye with an unknown instrument while he screams. Sam and Dean eventually manage to break in and kill the demons with Samandiriel while Castiel rescues the angel. On Dean's order, Castiel takes Samandiriel outside while they deal with the last demon.

Outside, Castiel tries to comfort Samandiriel, telling him he is going to take him back to Heaven, but Samandiriel is frightened as he revealed major angel secrets under torture. Samandiriel realizes Naomi is controlling Castiel and tries to warn him, but after learning that Samandiriel revealed the existence of the angel tablet to Crowley, Naomi orders Castiel to kill him. With no other choice, Castiel draws his sword and stabs Samandiriel, killing him. Castiel is horrified that he murdered another angel, but Naomi calls Samandiriel a traitor and Castiel a hero, explaining that the angel tablet's existence is a secret any angel would die to protect, including her and it has the potential to cause great harm if it falls into Crowley's hands as it could potentially be used to seal all angels inside Heaven. On Naomi's orders, Castiel claims Samandiriel was corrupted by Crowley and he was forced to kill him in self-defense and that he will be taking him to Heaven to be put to rest (in reality so Naomi can determine just how much he broke). However, his odd behavior and the fact that his eye starts bleeding before he leaves draws the Winchesters' suspicions that he is possibly being controlled.

After their defeat of Zeus and their return to the lair of the Men of Letters, Dean, recognizing that Sam is not doing as well as he claims to be while enduring the trials to close the Gates of Hell, prays to Castiel for aid, but Castiel does not respond to Dean's prayer, prompting Dean to wonder where his friend is.

Castiel is shown ruthlessly killing a copy of Dean to which Naomi comments that "he is ready" and it is discovered that he has killed thousands of copies. Naomi sends Castiel to locate the angel tablet to stop Crowley from getting his hands on it. His killing of the demons draws Sam and Dean's attention and he arrives in time to save a weakened Sam from a demon that was attacking him. Castiel binds a demon possessing Wendy Rice, in a devil's trap and explains to the brothers that he looking for the other half of the demon tablet while Crowley is looking for a parchment that can translate the tablet without a prophet. Castiel tortures the demon for information, with his angel sword, and when the demon is about to reveal the truth to Sam and Dean, he kills the demon on Naomi's command.

Castiel instantly heads to the hotel the demon revealed they are holding the hostage. Sam and Dean noticing this, hurriedly heads to the hotel as well and when they arrive they find that Castiel has already killed all the demons in the room. They discover that Meg is the hostage and everyone gathers to hear what's been happening. Meg explains to them that Crowley and his demons are actually looking for the angel tablet, much to the shock of Sam and Dean, since they thought they Crowley was searching for a parchment. Castiel, having been aloud by Naomi to let Meg explain, tells Sam and Dean that this revelation is a shock as well to cover up his story before. Afterwards, Castiel helps Megs with her wounds and Meg starts to flirt with him, reminiscing about their kiss in the past. They also discuss how everything was simple when the Apocalypse had started and how much things have changed between them. Meg subtly implies that she wants to have sex with Castiel when everything is over, something he doesn't pick up on.

After Dean, Sam and Castiel, with the help of Meg, discover the crypt holding the angel tablet, Dean and Castiel go ahead to retrieve it while Meg and Sam stay behind and keep watch on any demons coming through. After Castiel notices that the entrance to the crypt is blocked by a wall, he uses his angelic powers to shatter the wall. Dean goes through and Castiel points out to Dean where the angel tablet is since he cannot retrieve it himself because the box is angel proof. After Dean removes the angel tablet from the box, Castiel asks Dean to hand it over so he can return it to Heaven but Dean, being suspicious of Castiel for awhile, tries to manipulate his way out of it. Castiel, while under the control of Naomi, is forced to attack Dean and after a brutal bashing, Castiel struggles to land the finishing blow onto Dean. Castiel eventually manages to break free and picks up the angel tablet, regaining complete control of himself and severing Naomi's connection to him Castiel heals Dean's injuries and apologizes, explaining what happened. Before leaving he heals Dean and tells him that he must protect the tablet from Naomi, Crowley and even Dean himself for some reason.

Castiel is later seen on a bus with the angel tablet heading to a unknown location. While the angels are shown to be unable to find him, Naomi is at least somewhat pleased as he is doing what he is meant to do: protect the angel tablet.

Castiel hides from the angels looking for him and the angel tablet by moving through the various Biggerson's, confusing them. Eventually the angels Ion and Esper catch him by slaughtering all of the people at one of the Biggerson's, drawing his attention. Naomi arrives and reveals that Castiel has been forced to do many horrible things in his lifetime, but was never very good at following orders and his memory was always erased of it. Naomi demands the location of the angel tablet, but before she can start torturing him, Crowley shows up and kills Esper, wounds Ion who is on his side and drives away Naomi with an angel killing gun he has made. He then has Castiel taken to his office after shooting him in the stomach.

At Crowley's office, he has figured out where Castiel has hidden the tablet, inside himself and painfully removes it by digging into Castiel's stomach wound. Crowley then leaves Castiel alone with Ion after getting a call from two of his demons that Kevin Tran has figured out their deception. Ion reveals that he has always known the truth of the horrible acts he has done and has become disillusioned with Heaven. While Ion is distracted, Castiel digs the bullet out of his stomach, knocks Ion down and shoves the bullet through his eye, killing him.

Later, when Sam and Dean are driving back to the Bunker in the Impala, a wounded Castiel appears on the road in front of them, asking for help.

Castiel is now living in the Bunker with Sam and Dean, slowly recovering from his wound. Though he repeatedly tries to make amends with Dean, things are strained between them due to Castiel abandoning them and not trusting Dean again. When Sam finds the record of a weird exorcism, Castiel watches it with them and recognizes one of the changed words to mean "cleanse." Castiel offers to get supplies for the Bunker to try to make up for what he has done, but Dean refuses and he and Sam leave to check out the priests who performed the exorcism.

In an attempt to make up with Dean, Castiel goes to get supplies anyway and is annoyed when he is unable to get pie for Dean and threatens the clerk of the mini-mart. However, Metatron shows up to defuse the situation.

Talking with Metatron, the two discuss the state of Heaven and Metatron reveals that Naomi is only the leader of one of many factions fighting for control of Heaven and that he wants to seal up all angels inside to force them to have a big "family meeting" and work out their differences. As the Scribe of God Metatron knows the trials to seal up Heaven even without the angel tablet and wants Castiel to do them. Castiel eventually agrees and Metatron reveals that the first trial is to cut out the heart of a Nephilim, one of which, Jane, is their waitress. Castiel is reluctant, but Metatron convinces him.

That night, Castiel and Metatron stalk Jane who attacks them. Castiel loses his angel sword in the fight, but eventually retrieves it and kills Jane by stabbing her through the throat from behind while she is distracted fighting Metatron.

Preparing for the second trial, Castiel asks Metatron about God who Metatron says is gruff, kind of sexist but eminently fair. Metatron reveals that the second trial is to get the bow of a Cupid and that one is to make a man named Dwight Charles fall in love so they will have a chance.

Waiting in the bar where Dwight works for the Cupid to arrive, Castiel reads through personal adds in the newspaper in an attempt to help speed the process up, freaking Dwight out when he tries to ask him his preferences to help. Naomi arrives with two angels who capture Metatron. Castiel has a stand-off with them with his angel sword until Metatron defuses the situation by telling him to let him go.

Needing help to finish the trials, Castiel approaches Dean who is not keen to help as Sam is working on the third demon trial which is to cure a demon, in this case, Crowley. Sam convinces Dean to help and they eventually spot the Cupid, Gail, make Dwight fall in love with his regular customer Rod. Dean and Castiel confront Gail outside and while Castiel initially wants to use force to get the bow, Dean convinces him to talk to Gail instead. Gail, who is worried about the chaotic state of Heaven, agrees to help them, but Castiel ends up having to cut the bow out of her hand.

Afterwards, Dean and Castiel try to get the third trial from Kevin who has the angel tablet, but he tells them that while he sees trials on the tablet, he doesn't see anything about the heart of a Nephilim or the bow of a Cupid. At that moment, Naomi arrives and while Castiel wants to fight, she insists she is just there to talk and Dean convinces him to hear her out. Naomi reveals that Metatron really plans to expel all angels from Heaven as revenge for his own exile and shows remorse for her actions, offering to hear Castiel out if he truly wants to return to Heaven and revealing that Sam will die if he completes the trials. Castiel refuses to believe her, but takes Dean back to Sam before returning to Heaven to find out the truth for himself.

In Naomi's office, Castiel finds her dead with her own torture drill stabbed in the back of her head and is confronted by Metatron who confirms what Naomi told him. Metatron takes Castiel's grace to act as the third part of the spell he is performing, turning Castiel human and then, telling Castiel to find him when he dies and goes to Heaven to tell him his story, sends Castiel back to Earth.

On Earth, Castiel is forced to watch as all the angels fall from Heaven to Earth.

Now human, Castiel makes his way down a road in Colorado, still able to hear angel radio. His distraction causes him to nearly get hit by a truck and the driver offers him a ride after telling him there's no cell phone reception in the area and Castiel declining water. Castiel is also stunned by his injured palm, something he has never experienced before.

Dropped off at a gas station, Castiel reluctantly takes money from the man and on his way to a payphone, is met by the angelHael who is looking for guidance. Castiel suggests she use the chance to make a new start and that she visit the Grand Canyon when she expresses interest in it after revealing that she created it. Castiel agrees to go with her, but first calls Dean and reveals his new human status. He also recognizes Ezekiel when Dean mentions he is there to help Sam and tells him that Ezekiel can help. Dean convinces Castiel to help him and Sam instead of Hael and when he tells her this, she knocks him out and kidnaps him.

Driving in Hael's car, she reveals that her vessel is deteriorating and that she plans to possess Castiel himself to make her stronger, believing its the least he can do after he caused the fall of the angels from Heaven. Needing to stop Hael, Castiel puts on his seatbelt and then crashes her car, sending her through the window and incapacitating her while he survives with minor injuries. Castiel retrieves Hael's angel sword but declares that he is going to help all of the angels that have fallen rather than killing her. However, Hael threatens to broadcast his location to all of the angels looking for him if he doesn't allow her to possess him and he is forced to kill her with her own sword.

That night, Castiel visits a laundry mat and goes to clean his bloodstained trench coat and clothes, but realizes that he is hungry and thirsty. With not enough money to do both, Castiel abandons his clothes, including his trench coat, steals new ones and buys water (which he drinks thirstily) and food from a vending machine.

Castiel, making his way towards the Bunker, stays at a homeless shelter where he works picking up trash in the nearby churchyard. Castiel is still trying to get a handle on being human and has taken on the name "Clarence" as an alias, the name Meg always called him. After finding two priests tortured and murdered by angels, Castiel quickly moves on.

At a homeless camp, Castiel discusses being human with a homeless man. When he mentions he has trouble sleeping, the man suggests he "count sheep," confusing Castiel. Castiel goes to sleep in a broken-down bus, but is awakened when an angel arrives nearby to kill him. Sensing the angel, Castiel draws his angel sword, but the angel catches him by surprise and slashes him in the shoulder with his own sword. The angel is surprised to realize that Castiel is human and Castiel uses the distraction to kill him. Castiel quickly hitchhikes a ride on a meat truck to Detroit to get away from further angels.

In Detroit, Castiel has to decide between getting an Enochiantattoo that can ward him from being sensed by angels and getting food and he gets the tattoo, leaving him with no money for food. He later goes to a church where he meets a woman praying for angels to save her sick husband and Castiel tries to tell her the truth about the state of Heaven. However, the woman has too much faith to believe him and suggests that Castiel pray himself and to keep faith. Castiel digs through a garbage can for food and meets waitress April Kelly who gives him a sandwich. That night, Castiel is still siting outside the restaurant and April takes him home.

At April's apartment, she dresses his wound and the two have sex. Afterwards, Castiel tells April about how he made a mistake out of vanity and how it led to bad things. The next morning, Castiel dresses in his washed clothes, but is unable to find his angel sword. April reveals that she has it and that she is in fact a rouge reaper who is hunting him for the angels. April tortures him with his own angel sword for information on Metatron and his spell, but Castiel tells her he didn't know the truth until too late and that his grace was the final ingredient. Castiel tells April it would be foolish to kill him as if his Grace was the key to making the spell work, he may be the key to reversing it. Before April can go any further, Sam and Dean burst in and April stabs Castiel with the angel sword, killing him. After Dean kills April with the angel sword she used to kill Castiel, Ezekiel takes control of Sam and resurrects Castiel, healing all the damage April did to him. Unable to tell them the truth about Ezekiel, Dean claims Sam was knocked out and he made a deal with April to not kill her if she resurrected Castiel then went back on it.

At the Bunker, Castiel enjoys the abundance of food and tells Sam and Dean that he finally understands humanity more. He also admits to having sex with April to their shock and doesn't understand when Dean asks him if he used protection. Castiel goes off to eat a burrito, but after Ezekiel tells Dean that Castiel must leave or he must due to how dangerous it is to be around Castiel with angels chasing him, Dean reluctantly orders Castiel to leave as Ezekiel leaving would mean death for Sam.

Working as a sales associate at a gas station- and also serving as a baby-sitter for his boss, Nora, although he initially assumed it was a date-, Castiel calls the Winchesters for help after two people in his area simultaneously combust. With Dean's aid, Castiel determines that the victims were killed by a Rit Zein, a class of angel healers that kill mortally wounded angels, but is nearly killed by the Rit Zein, Ephraim, before Dean manages to provide him with an angel blade. After Ephraim is killed, Dean drives Castiel back to the gas station and leaves him to resume his job.

Investigating recent conflicts between angels, Castiel initially aids Sam and Dean before "Ezekiel" sends Castiel away, forcing Castiel to pray for aid. His prayers are answered by Muriel, a neutral angel in the war, who explains that the current conflict is between factions led by the angels Bartholomew and Malachi, but the two are captured by Malachi and his ally Theo. Muriel is killed while Malachi tortures Castiel for information about Metatron, but when Malachi leaves, Castiel is able to trick Theo into releasing him, allowing him to steal Theo's grace and restore at least some of his powers. Having learned from Malachi and Theo that Ezekiel died in the fall, Castiel calls Dean to warn him about "Ezekiel," but the renegade angel manages to escape.

Dean calls Castiel to the bunker and tells him about Sam being possessed. Castiel consoles dean and suggests that Sam could cast the angel out if he knew he was being possessed and proposes using Crowley’s help to bypass the angel and talk directly to Sam.

Later when they manage to track Gadreel, Castiel uses his powers to knock him unconscious. Castiel identifies Gadreel as the sentry who allowed Lucifer into the garden. He becomes red with fury and blames Gadreel for the apocalypse and accuses him of being week. Later he removes Sam’s tattoo allowing him to get possessed by Crowley. When Gadreel is cast out, Castiel tells Sam that it will take time to fully heal him and stays with him while Dean drives away.

In the process of healing Sam, Castiel recognizes a part of Gadreel’s grace inside of him, but it fades each time he heals him. Castiel suggests extracting the grace and doing a spell to track Gadreel. The extraction proves to be dangerous to Sam. After a while Castiel stops the extraction and heals Sam fully; he doesn’t believe that tracking Gadreel is worth Sam’s life. Castiel admits that the old him would have thought that the end justifies the means, but being human has changed Castiel’s view on Sam and taught him a few things and now he understands what guilt feels like. They try the tracking spell but it doesn’t work. Castiel believes that Metatron is the key to fixing everything, and tries to convince Sam to ask for Dean’s help to no avail.

In Castiel’s attempt to track down Metatron, he learns of a faction of angels who wanted to live peacefully led by an angel named Rebecca; however they were all killed by Bartholomew. Castiel later is captured and taken to HQ where he meets Bartholomew,who is happy to see Castiel; he tells him he aims to find Metatron and restore angels to heaven and tries to make Castiel join his side. Bartholomew then tortures an angel for information and asks Castiel to kill him, saying that he needs proof that Castiel can do what has to be done. When Castiel refuses, Bartholomew tries to attack him; Castiel easily overpowers him but doesn’t kill him. Bartholomew however lungs for Castiel again, and Castiel is forced to kill him. Later Castiel is standing at Rebecca’s grave, where one of Bartholomew’s henchmen approaches and tells him that he and other angels are willing to join Castiel.

While Castiel refuses to lead other angels against Metatron, he is shocked when he is visited by what appears to be Gabriel, returned to life and willing to rally the angels against the former Scribe. Castiel realizes that 'Gabriel' is just an illusion, but is forced to accept the mantle of leader despite knowing that this is what Metatron wants, as well as learning that his stolen Grace will eventually kill him.

Castiel contacts Sam and Dean for help interrogating one of Metatron's followers, who reveals that Metatron has discovered a back door into Heaven that would allow the angels to return to Heaven. Castiel attempts to convince Gadreel that he is fighting for the wrong side in a meeting.

An angel blows himself in an ice cream parlour, killing one of Metatron's angels and several humans, and claims to have done it in Castiel's name. Metatron is revealed to have been brainwashing other angels to commit suicide assaults and claim that they are doing it in Castiel's name to portray Cas as a despot willing to resort to any means of victory before his Grace burns out. Metatron forces Castiel into an impossible situation by manipulating Castiel's followers to perceive him as unreliable, presenting Dean as an unstable killer due to the Mark of Cain after Tessa stabs herself with the First Blade while Dean was interrogating her. While Castiel's followers thus abandon him, Gadreel is convinced to side with Castiel, although Dean attacks Gadreel when he attempts to explain the situation to them.

With Dean on lockdown due to the Mark's influence, Castiel and Sam talk with Gadreel, who reveals that Metatron intends to set himself up as the new God. With the power from the angel tablet making Metatron virtually unstoppable, Castiel and Gadreel attempt to infiltrate Heaven to shatter the tablet while Sam and Dean try to find Metatron. Metatron stabs Dean, but while Castiel and Gadreel are locked up in Heaven's prison, but Gadreel sacrifices himself to free Castiel and convince Hannah to help him. With the angel tablet destroyed, Castiel forces Meatron to confront him and reveal his true disdain for humanity and the other angels after Castiel activates 'angel radio' to broadcast a message to the rest of the angels. Metatron is overpowered and locked up, but Castiel is left facing both his new responsibilities as the other angels' perceived leader and his own imminent death unless he can cure his diminishing Grace.

Castiel is approached by Hannah to help her track down renegade angels Daniel and Adina, who have chosen to remain on Earth in favour of the freedom they have on Earth. Although Castiel is forced to kill Daniel to save Hannah despite his understanding of Daniel's motives, he continues to argue in favour of angels taking on human values.

Sam contacts Castiel to alert him to Dean's transformation into a demon due to the influence of the Mark of Cain. With Castiel still dying due to his stolen Grace, Hannah approaches Metatron for aid, but although Metatron hints at possessing a fragment of Castiel's original Grace, Castiel stops her from making a deal, not wanting to resort to evil means to save his life.

As Castiel and Hannah travel to the bunker to help Sam cure Dean, they are ambushed by Adina, seeking revenge for Daniel's death. However, Crowley intervenes in time to kill Adina, transferring her grace to Castiel and restoring his own powers. Now 'recharged', Castiel makes it to the bunker in time to stop Dean from killing Sam. allowing Sam to complete the cure.

Castiel in Lore

Castiel is the angel of Thursday, new changes and travel; sometimes he is written as the angel of solitude and tears. His name translates to "Shield of God." By praying to him, he will help anyone born on a Thursday or anyone who asks for his help on that day; help if there are changes in the prayer's live which may involve a lot of traveling. In the Occult: his symbol is the Archer and the tarot card is Temperance

Trivia

Castiel's name is first mentioned in the season three episode 3.06 Red Sky at Morning during the graveyard scene where Sam reads aloud a summoning ritual from his father's journal. He speaks the names of several angels during the ritual, and one of them is Castiel.

Misha Collins reports that "Kripke wanted to base the look of the character on the comic book character ‘Constantine’" (Source).

There was great secrecy around the introduction of the character. When the role was being cast it was advertised as being for a demon. It was only at the audition that Misha found out Castiel was an angel. Read the casting sides for Castiel.

Dean first refers to Castiel as "Cas" in 4.04 Metamorphosis. The nickname is subsequently used by Sam and Anna then Uriel as well; later several characters refer to him by the nickname, e.g. Ellen Harvelle.

The show's writers spell the nickname "Cass" (Source). In fandom, and particularly in fanfiction it is almost exclusively spelled "Cas."

On the Season 4 DVD the English subtitles call him "Cass" and other times it's "Cas."

There is a municipality in Switzerland called Castiel. Its coat of arms is Saint George killing a dragon. It looks similar to Michael fighting a dragon. This image has appeared in paintings in 2.13 Houses of the Holy and 4.22 Lucifer Rising.